One at a Time
by Mellybean23
Summary: During a major black out, the Palm Woods guests find out they're stranded with a killer. Who is it? Why are they doing it? Will BTR survive? Mostly friendship, but slight BTR/OC. I do not own BTR.
1. Chapter 1

**So, this is based on an idea I had and also some true events of the New York City Black Out of 1977 which lasted for twelve hours. During those twelve hours, the city went into total chaos, which included looting, raping, beatings, killings, and defiance of the law in general. That was also during the summer that was the height of the Son of Sam killings. All in all, you didn't want to be a New Yorker in 1977. But parts are based off of that ordeal. **

* * *

><p><strong>Introduction: Wrong Way<strong>

Stephanie walked to the Elevator and pressed the down button. Tomorrow was a huge audition and she was almost out of concealer. Thankfully, this problem could be easily solved with a short little trip to the mall two blocks down the street. And a little time shopping for new outfits couldn't hurt.

Bing, Bing Bin… went the elevator.

_Great_, thought an extremely annoyed Stephanie as she glared at the now blank screen above her, _this was the perfect time for the elevator to go out. But hey, at least the lights still worked._

There was a quick zapping sound, and the lights followed suit.

_Great_, Stephanie thought for the second time in as many minutes. _Was the whole building with out power now?_

But standing around being angry wasn't going to solve her make up problem. She would just have to take the stairs. As she headed down the stair well, she noticed how dark it was outside. She had been practicing inside of her bathroom before she left and hadn't noticed how late it had gotten. Maybe shopping could wait until tomorrow when the mall wasn't about to close.

As Stephanie came to the bottom of the stairs, she was faced with two options: one, she could go through the lobby that would be filled with people complaining to Bitters about the power failure, or two, she could go out through the back alley and out the gates straight to the mall with out having to go through a shark tank. Option number two certainly seemed like the better choice at that particular moment in time.

As she rounded the corner, she reached into her bag to grab her iPod. She never even saw it coming.

BAM!

_What the fu-_

And then she knew no more.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading. I'm sorry that it's so short, but the next chapters will be longer. So will the Black Out.<strong>

**Also, I am taking about three Ocs. They will be killed, but you'll get to hear them speak once or twice! This is kind of just so that I have some people to kill off, however morbid and creepy that sounds. Anyways, tell me their name, age, looks, why they're at the Palm Woods, and a bit about their personality. And, if you really want to, how you would prefer them to be killed.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I would just like to say that this is already off to a better start then most of my other stories, because I actually have… (wait for it…) A plan. Gasp! I know! The world's most unorganized and slightly moody person has a plan for something besides lunch! I would suggest buying a lottery ticket with all the luck you seem to be having.**

**I know who the killer is, how they will evade suspicion, who their main target is, why they are doing this, and what their conclusion will be. Not their death, necessarily, but their conclusion. What the end of the story will give them, per say. Though I do love it when people guess, don't bother asking me, because I will not respond to your review.**

**Also, I would like to add that I will be unable to update for about two weeks at the beginning of June. Possibly three or four because of finals. I'm taking finals Thursday, Friday, and Monday, then going on a two week backpacking trip on Sunday, so I will be BUSY to say the least. Also, laptops are heavy and I would rather face your wrath then carry one with me for two weeks. Not that I'll have time to write.**

**Anyways, on with the story!**

* * *

><p>"Breaking news! Almost all of the Los Angeles area has been engulfed in a massive black out that is ranging from the Huntington Beach area all the way to Thousand Oakes. Workers are trying desperately to repair the damage to more than seven generators that were damaged in a fire that started late Wednesday evening."<p>

"Yes, Sasha, and unfortunately for firefighters, residents of the area, and the power plant workers, it seems that the weather is not on their side. It will continue to be hot and dry with temperatures up to a hundred and seven degrees and wind gusts of close to twenty miles an hour for the rest of the week. It is going to be one nasty week to be in the city of Angels, especially if this turns out to be anything like the infamous New York City black out of 1977."

"It sure looks like it may, Tom. Already, reports of looting, raping, and chaos in general are flooding in from across the city. Amy Polberaldo is live just outside of Los Angeles with more."

* * *

><p>When the boys woke up Thursday morning, the first thing that they noticed was how high the sun was in the sky. As they entered the kitchen, they saw that none of the electric appliances seemed to be working. Kendall was the one who managed to put two and two together and decided to go downstairs to ask Mr. Bitters if the whole building had lost power. James went with him to look for a working hair dryer, while Carlos and Logan decided to eat breakfast.<p>

Carlos and Logan finished their breakfast and headed to the stairs. They were supposed to go record a couple of songs today, but if the whole building had lost power, then the gates would be closed and they would be stuck until the power came back on. They sure hoped that the power outage was only in their room, but just by looking out the window, they could tell that other people were with out power. Already, there was havoc in the streets. Traffic was backed up (more then usual) and there was smoke in the sky. Things were looking grim already but they were about to get grimmer.

As they walked to the lobby, they were faced with a crowd of people.

"Look, I don't care! I want to go NOW!"

"It's not safe, my family needs to leave!"

"Look, is there any possible way for us to get out of here?"

Mr. Bitters was behind his desk looking terrified and completely overwhelmed.

"We are doing are best, and I assure you that it was just an unfortunate accident! There's nothing to be alarmed about!" he soothed, but to no avail

"What's going on?" asked Carlos, as Kendall came rushing past

"I- I don't know how to tell you, but…" began Kendall

"Look, we already know that the city's probably out of power." Said Logan

"That's not all, Logan." Whispered Kendall

"What? What is it?" asked Carlos excitedly

"It's not good, Carlos." Sighed Kendall

"Well, what is it, Kendall?" Logan nearly shouted

"They- they just found Stephanie's body." He whispered

* * *

><p>Even though Carlos and Stephanie went to the dance together, that had been about as far as their relationship had gone. The truth of the matter was that they were both too busy for a relationship so they (more like Stephanie) had decided not to continue. It had ended on okay terms, but there was still this strangely awkward question about how you were supposed to act when your ex girlfriend was just brutally murdered.<p>

"I'm so sorry, man." Murmured Logan solemnly

"I know that you liked her and all, but it'll be okay! There'll be other girls!" said James in a pseudo enthusiastic voice

It was weird. Carlos felt… well, not exactly upset, but he sure wasn't happy. But he wasn't going to stop living and all that sappy stuff because his ex girlfriend was killed. But still, he just felt so… different. Like things could never possibly be the same.

"No- I think I'm going to be okay, you guys." Whispered Carlos thoughtfully

Logan and James exchanged a quick look. This was so unlike Carlos. He was usually so happy and spazzy and… just not like this.

Carlos must have seen this, because he suddenly blurted out, "Hey! Let's build a shopping cart elevator!"

Logan and James exchanged another worried look as he ran off to the conference rooms in the Palm Woods, but they followed after Carlos anyways.

* * *

><p>Kendall was still in shock, even that evening as he sat out by the Palm Woods pool. Who would want to do this to Stephanie? She was just so… Stephanie. She had probably never had a bad thought in her entire life, and now… it was too horrible for Kendall to think about, that's how many times Stephanie had been stabbed.<p>

"Kendall, what's up?" asked Jo, in a rather inappropriately flirty voice, as she stepped outside of the hotel lobby and onto the pool deck.

"What? Oh, I was just thinking after all the stuff that happened…" Kendall trailed off; hoping that she would get the hint and either leave him to his thoughts, or at least start acting like one of her closest friends had been killed

"So, who were you thinking about, Kendall?" asked Jo in the same overly flirty voice

Apparently, she hadn't gotten the hint.

"Don't you care at all? One of your best friends was just murdered!" snapped Kendall

"Dr. Wegener said that she fell down the stairs, Kendall. T could have easily been an accident." Retorted Jo in a 'no nonsense' sort of voice

"So what? The more than ten stab wounds don't give away the fact that someone might have pushed her as well as stab her?" replied Kendall sarcastically

"You know, it's not a crime to try and distract yourself from terrible things, Kendall." Snapped Jo, as she stood up and walked back into the hotel lobby

Kendall, sighed. Maybe he was being unfair. People all reacted to shock and sadness and death in very different ways. He tended to just sit and think, james tended to spend even more time in front of the mirror, Logan kept asking everyone if they were okay, and Carlos half heartedly made stupid stunts. Maybe Jo flirted with people to help herself through these hard times. He must have been lost in his thoughts for a while, because when he looked up from his knees (which were in his "staring spot"), it was becoming twilight.

"Excuse me, can I sit here?" asked a voice form above

Kendall looked up. It was Taylor. She was one of Stephanie's very close friends. She honestly looked like hell. Her dark blonde hair was in a half ways attempted pony tail and her eyes were red and puffy from all the crying she must have been doing.

"Yeah, sure. I was just thinking a bit." Said Kendall, as she sat down in the chair across from him

"O- oh! I- I didn't mean to disturb you, but I- I just don't want to be alone, you know, after everything that's happened… you know, with St- Ste-" she seemed to be struggling with the last word, so Kendall decided to step in

"It's fine. I understand. But I was actually going to start heading back up to my room… it's nothing against you, but it's just that it's getting dark out and I'd rather… well, not be out here, with what's happened and stuff." Explained Kendall

Taylor seemed to feel the same way, because she looked around quickly and began to shiver a bit.

"I understand. I'll go with you." She said quietly, as she got up from her chair

Kendall got up to go inside of the Palm Woods as well. It wasn't that he was scared of the dark, but when one of your good friends was just brutally murdered, you tended to get a little nervous and overly cautious.

"I'm really sorry about Stephanie, you know." He said to Taylor as they walked inside

"Thanks. I- it's really hard. She was such a good friend." Sighed Taylor, who looked a bit close to tears

Kendall opened the door to the lobby for her, only to find what looked like somewhere around ten people inside talking quietly amongst them selves. Kendall and Taylor approached the group consisting of Logan, Carlos, James, Camille, Katie, one of the three Jennifers, a boy looking around his age named Justin who was on some random new sitcom, a girl with yellowy blonde hair that Kendall was almost certain was named Claire and he thought might be a singer too, and another girl with light brown hair that Kendall had only seen a few times before, usually with her nose in a book.

"What's going on?" asked Kendall curiously

The girl that Kendall didn't know turned around to speak to him.

"We're talking about who we think would have done that to Stephanie." She said, her voice obviously laced with suspicion

"Heather, Kendall wouldn't do that." Snapped Logan, who was quick to defend his friends

Kendall nodded gratefully, though Heather still looked like she didn't trust him (or anyone else, for that matter), and said:

"I think we should all get back to our rooms, then meet here tomorrow morning to talk about this some more. We've all had a long day, and it's probably best if we don't sit down here in the dark while there's a possible murdered on the loose."

Justin, Carlos, James, and Claire all looked like they agreed with him and were grateful for his suggestion. Heather, on the other hand, only looked increasingly suspiscious of Kendall and also, of his suggestion to go to bed.

"Why should we trust you? Or do what you say? I think-" she was about to start on Kendall, but Claire lightly placed her hand on her shoulder

"Heather, cut it out! There's no reason to act like this. For all we know, Stephanie's killer isn't even here anymore." countered Claire

"How would they have gotten over the gate, Claire?" she retorted

"Maybe they killed her before the power outage?" said Jason in a 'well, DUH' voice

Heather looked ready to start having a go at Jason too, when Camille finally stepped in

"Look, whatever you think, Kendall's right. If the killer is still here, he or she is more likely to strike in the dark. We should really get back to our rooms now." said Camille

Many of the other teens looked like they agreed with her, so, in the end, they all headed up the front stairs (thankfully there were three sets, so they could easily avoid the spot of Stephanie's murder) and to their rooms.

* * *

><p>It was later that night that they all heard it. Every resident in the Palm Woods heard it. Whether they were sleeping, reading in the candlelight, thinking, or too scared to go to sleep (most fell into the final category).<p>

It was a scream so loud and chilling that it jolted Justin Karvina from his deep sleep, Kendall from his intense thoughts, and Heather Merkel's nose right out of the twelfth chapter of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Stephanie's killer had struck again that night.

* * *

><p><strong>Who's the killer? Who just died? Review to find out!<strong>

**Oh, and submit OCs too. They'll be killed, but they may have some BTR moments if I like them [=**

**Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Anyone who can tell me who what my geology reference is wins a short sneak peak of the next chapter. I'll give you a clue- it's a minor character that was mentioned in the last chapter and formally introduced in this. Rules- who is it, what country is he from, and what did he do. Anyone who can tell me the movie line that I have in here and what movie it's from will get to know who dies next.**

**I would ask about the news reporters (they're actually the names of real local news reporters) but you probably wouldn't know them. **

**Also, thank you to everyone who reviewed, added me to favorites/ story alerts, or sent me an OC. Those things make my day. Mainly the reviews are what make my day, but alerts are okay too. Now, on with the story! **

**Warning- there may be some gruesome descriptions from now on**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Two<strong>

"It's still over one hundred degrees in Los Angeles, and, unfortunately, the power situation has not gotten much better. The flames that began to rage inside of three of the city's biggest power plants two nights ago are still burning strong. Already, three firefighters have been killed attempting to battle the flames and restore power and the citizens of Los Angeles are not doing much better. More than eighty percent of the city and suburbs around Los Angeles are still with out power. With us now is expert Mark Shontela. Mark, how long can these people expect to be with out power?"

"Well, Amy, we still don't know. Even once the fires are put out; it will take at least two days to repair all of the damage done to the power plants. But the fact remains that no progress will be made until the fires are contained and exterminated, which is just not going to happen any time soon, especially in this weather. Residents should expect to have to wait till next week to get power back."

"What do you have to say about the rumors that the President has ordered the National Guard to go into Los Angeles to try and gain back some sort of control after hearing all of the reports of chaos and havoc in the city?"

"If he does, I wouldn't blame him. Even if only half of the reports that we are receiving are true, then all hell must have broken loose in Los Angeles overnight. Residents should avoid going outside, after dark or other wise, and keep all doors shut and all blinds drawn. Los Angeles may have become Hell on earth."

* * *

><p>They found what was left of Jennifer's body the next morning out by the pool. It was a huge, bloody mess that actually made both Taylor and James throw up. It was actually only by identifying who was missing and listening to the chocking sobs of the two other Jennifers that they were able to identify who the horribly disfigured body on the ground was.<p>

Dr. Wegener was there to examine the body in only a few minutes.

"So, did she fall off of her balcony?" asked Jo in a hoarse, yet curios voice

"More like pushed. See how far she is from the building? She either would have had to jump from her balcony or someone would have had to push her, and considering all the recent circumstances and the fact that she landed on her face, I'm willing to bet that she was pushed. Besides, if you look on her neck, there's bruising that looks like a ring. Whoever pushed her probably tried to strangle her first." Concluded Dr. Wegener solemnly

Blonde haired Jennifer chocked back a sob at this new development, and curly haired Jennifer shuddered. It was hard enough to lose one of your best friends, but losing them through murder just made it all the worse. Logan made a mental note to have Carlos or James keep an eye on the two remaining Jennifers.

"Do you have any idea who could have done this?" gasped Claire as Dr. Wegener turned over Jennifer's body revealing another large bruise along her back that looked a lot like either a bat or another type of large stick

Dr. Wegener stared at the bruise for a while before answering.

"Someone that's much larger then her or that she thought was her friend and wouldn't do this. They would also have to have considerable upper body strength and access to either a baseball bat, a softball bat, or a hockey stick. This blow looks as if it injured her spine and probably knocked her down." Explained Dr. Wegener gravely

Taylor winced. This was too horrible to continue to listen to. She had to leave.

* * *

><p>Taylor sat down in the lobby across from a girl named Elle. Elle was… well, not exactly nice to Taylor or anyone else. She had a big ego seeing as she was going to be playing Glinda in the upcoming movie version of Wicked, but Taylor was sure that somewhere deep down there was a nice person.<p>

"Oh, well if it isn't short, fat, and ugly all rolled into one." Sneered Elle from her large and fluffy chair

Scratch that, Elle was just an egotistical bitch. And Taylor wasn't fat… just… full figured.

Just as Taylor was getting ready to make a nasty comeback, the lobby doors opened and everyone from last night including Jo and the two remaining Jennifers walked into the lobby and took their seats. It was time for a major discussion.

Kendall stood up. It was time for someone to take charge.

"Look, before we start pointing fingers, does anyone know why anyone would have done that to Jennifer? Has she received any threats, gotten into any fights recently, stolen any parts, or broken up with any boyfriends in the past few weeks?" asked Kendall

"It's obvious, who ever killed Stephanie must have also killed Jennifer." Said blonde Jennifer accusingly

"How do we even know that? For all we know, it could have been different people. I mean, they weren't even killed in the same way!" reasoned Claire

"Well, Dr. Wegener did say that Stephanie was also hit with a hockey stick…" Heather trailed off accusingly, her eyes never leaving Kendall

Logan, Claire, and Katie all groaned. Not this, again.

"Why do you always think that it's me? Besides, he did say it could have been a baseball bat and we all know that you love baseball. You know what, I wouldn't be surprised if you were the killer, Heather Merkel, what with the way you keep pointing fingers!" snapped Kendall accusingly

"It's my defense mechanism." Heather replied casually

"Some defense mechanism. If I was the killer, I would kill you next." Said Kendall, not realizing until it was too late, what the consequences of his words might be

The room gasped in shock. Heather raised her eyebrows in victory. Kendall rapidly began to sweat uncontrollably under the suspicious and shocked expressions of his peers. Logan did a mental face palm before coming to the defense of his best friend.

"Look, I hate to tell you, Heather, but we all know that you were a softball player back at your old high school in Arizona, which would mean that you would have as much access to a softball bat as Kendall has to a hockey stick." Said Logan calmly as he stepped between the two standing teens

Heather gasped, seemingly caught off guard.

"How did you know that?" she gasped

"The first time you were at the Palm Woods you had come for a softball tournament. Then you came to start acting, and when you did you complained for about a month that the Palm Woods school had no softball team. We all know that you were a softball player, Heather." Replied Camille

Heather sat down in defeat; a rare moment for her.

"Look, that still doesn't make me the killer!" she defended

"Then admit that playing hockey doesn't make me the killer." Countered Kendall triumphantly

Heather mumbled something under her breath that sounded like a half hearted attempt at an apology while crossing her arms and looking into the corner of the room furthest from the triumphant look on Kendall's face.

"Why do you guys even care? Jennifer stole a part from almost every girl here and Stephanie was probably going to have to leave anyways because 'Mr. Sunshine' got cancelled." Said Elle, finally looking up from her magazine

"Because the killer might come after you next." Said Katie

"Guys, this isn't going to solve anything! We have to stick together and work together if we're going to get through this!" cried Carlos as he jumped up

"Carlos is right," said James, his eyes on Elle, "Arguing and playing the blame game won't help us at all. We have to stick together. Maybe we should assign Watch Buddies?" offered James, flashing a dazzling smile at Elle who rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p>"What is Heather's problem? Why does she think it's me?" complained Kendall later that evening in the living room while he, Logan, Carlos, Camille, Jo, and Katie ate peanut butter sandwiches with warm soda and slightly brown carrots.<p>

"Probably the eyebrows." Replied Camille loftily

"Camille, Kendall's got a point. Heather really thinks it's him." Said Logan

"Maybe she's just trying to blame it on someone." Suggested Camille

"Who would do that? That's horrible!" gasped Carlos

"Maybe it's her way of dealing with all of this. We all do it, but in different ways. Kendall tries to control everyone, Logan does more math than usual, Carlos, you barely talk and you keep acting like nothing's happened, just like Jo, and…" Camille trailed off

"James can't put away his mirror." Offered Katie, glaring at the self absorbed brunette who was combing his hair carefully in his pocket mirror

They all began to laugh for the first time since the power went out, when they were distracted by the sound of Jo crying.

"What is it? Are you okay?" gasped Kendall as he put his arms around her

"It- it's just that I cant believe Stephanie's gone. She- she was such a great fr- friend. And Jennifer was probably really nice once you got to know her, but I never did! And- and what if we're next? I- I don't want to lose you Kendall." She sobbed into his chest

"It's going to be okay, It's going to be okay, Jo." He whispered

"Don't worry, we'll get through this." Said Carlos softly, as he joined the embrace

"It'll be okay, you guys." Said James as he walked over to the group huddled in the kitchen

One by one, the rest joined the large group hug.

* * *

><p>"Be careful. Walk very quickly and scream if you see or hear anything. We'll be listening." Whispered Kendall to Jo and Camille, as they each set out to their respective apartments on the two floors above the boys<p>

"We will be. I'll run to my apartment once Camille gets to her place." Said Jo, as she hugged Kendall good night and grabbed her bag

The two set off quickly as the boys watched them go.

They then shut and dead bolted the apartment door. Mrs. Knight came up behind Kendall and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"My, baby, oh, my baby." She whispered over and over as she rocked him gently

"Love you mom." Whispered Kendall as he wrapped his arms around her

Mrs. Knight stopped suddenly and looked around at the other three boys who had awkwardly walked back into the candlelit living room.

"Come here. All of you." She said as she gave them each a huge hug

"I love each and every one of you so much. And nothing will ever change that." She whispered to the boys

* * *

><p>"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"<p>

James jolted upright in his bed and grabbed the flashlight on his bed stand.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

As he rushed into the apartment hall, he saw Kendall, Carlos, Logan, Katie and Mrs. Knight running out of their rooms too. Mrs. Knight had what looked like a baseball bat, Logan had a text book, Katie had a stick, and Carlos and Kendall had both grabbed hockey sticks.

All of the children made a bee lins for the door, but Mrs. Knight stood in their way.

"I am not letting you leave this apartment, do you understand? Stay here and lock the door." She commanded

"But-"they all started

"Not buts. Now stay here and be safe." She whispered

And the boys watched her go.

* * *

><p><strong>Dun dun dun… who's dead this time? who's the killer? Will Mrs. Knight survive? What is up with Kendall's eyebrows? All will be revealed soon enough.<strong>

**Now review. Please.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I think I've finalized the story line, number of chapters, and who dies when. Hooray! Hazzah! Go me!**

**Also, this chapter is a bit shorter than the others. There just wasn't very much to write about. It's also a bit of a filler chapter too. Sorry!**

**Also, I have a new poll on my profile. Check it out if you want to!**

**Also, thank you so much to all of my reviewers! You guys make my day.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

"The entire Los Angeles area has now been with out power for over three days now, and the situation does not look likely to improve. Temperature forecasts are still in the upper nineties and lower hundreds for the rest of the week, and the chance of rain has plummeted to ten percent. Already thousands are being evacuated to other areas, but many in the inner city will be stuck there until order can be restored."

"And, quite possibly, the most shocking thing is that if you look behind us, you can see real footage of Los Angeles, or more accurately, what's left of Los Angeles. There are an estimated thirty fires burning through out the city, not including the ones at the power plants. Most are suspecting arson, and not accidents, as the cause for most of these fires. It seems as if the very worst in people is all that's left right now. If I were in Los Angeles, you couldn't pay me to brave the city streets."

"Yes, it seems that the city of Angels has now turned into the city from hell."

The sun was up by the time Mrs. Knight returned, paler than a ghost or even someone that had seen a ghost. She was so visibly shaken, that Logan and Kendall had to help her open and lock the door, walk across the living room, and take her seat.

"I- I don't want you kids going down there. At least, not until it's cleaned up." Whispered Mrs. Knight

The boys exchanged worried glances.

"If we don't show up, we become prime suspects, mom. We have to go." Pleaded Kendall

Mrs. Knight sighed and looked up at the four boys and Katie.

"The boys can go, but Katie is to stay here. And please, don't look too long." She decided

This just made the boys even more uneasy.

* * *

><p>Unlike the two previous times, the walk down stairs was strangely quiet. Maybe it was because of Mrs. Knight's sinister warning. Maybe it was because Katie was absent from their solemn parade. Or (the most likely of all) maybe it was because of the hushed and shocked silence that the four boys could hear coming from the lobby.<p>

They entered from the stairs to find every adult in the Palm Woods gathered at the entrance to the lobby, but the boys didn't have to get up close to see the extent of the damage. Blood was every where. It was on every wall, every surface, and on the carpet too. Carlos was almost sick, and the rest weren't far behind him.

"Who's dead?" began Logan, when a mess of curly brown hair pushed past him and the rest of the boys with Camille rushing after it.

"Heather, Heather wait. It'll be okay!" she called frantically as Heather rushed towards the bathroom.

"Wait, what's wrong with Heather?" Carlos called after Camille, but his question was soon answered.

"Oh my God…" whispered Kendall as he caught sight of the, not one, but two, bodies that had been strewn across the floor.

But the most shocking thing of all was the long, thick, green and red hockey stick with a Minnesota Wild's logo on it that was lying in the middle of the floor, covered in Claire Mansfield and Mr. Bitters' fresh blood.

* * *

><p>The entire lobby was a mess. Magazines and furniture was strewn everywhere. Blood had splattered across the walls and ceiling and furniture. It was so terrible that James had gone upstairs to keep Katie from seeing all of the damage to the lobby and to the two victims.<p>

But there was another reason why James had kept Katie upstairs. It was because of Kendall.

"Look, my dad got me that hockey stick at the first game we ever went to! I would never play hockey with it, none the less kill some one with it! And I would never even kill someone in the first place! And why would anyone kill Claire? She's never done anything to me!" pleaded Kendall desperately

"Look, Kendall, the entire hotel knows that you and Heather were about ready to kill each other just last night, and now Heather's best friend turns up dead. So, what most of us are thinking is that you wanted to get back at Heather by making her suffer or that you thought Claire was Heather when you killed her and Mr. Bitters last night." Pressed Justin from the chair across from Kendall's

"Justin, Kendall's right. He wouldn't have killed Heather or Claire over the argument that they had last night. It was not a big deal and it was nothing to get worked up over." Camille said, coming quickly to Kendall's defense.

"Thanks, Camille." Said Kendall

Kendall, Camille and Justin were all sitting in the small boiler room down the hall from the lobby. Camille had come to make sure that Kendall knew to leave Heather alone, where as Justin had come to "interrogate" Kendall about the two latest murders and the hockey stick found next to them.

"Look here, buddy." Snapped Justin, "I don't care how often your father abused you, but murder is wrong and we will be pressing charges. You have the right to re-"

"Justin, just because you're in some cop drama it doesn't mean that you are a cop." Sighed Camille

Justin stopped short, thought it over for a few minutes, and must have seen Camille's point because he suddenly seemed to stop trying to play the good cop/ bad cop character.

"Well then why did you bring us here in the first place, Camille?" snapped a very annoyed Justin

"To help prove that Kendall's innocent!" revealed Camille

"How will taking me to the boiler room help?" asked a very confused Kendall

"Let's face it, you guys, the rest of the Palm Woods thinks that Kendall killed all of those people, so if we can keep him here, video tape it, then show that he was here the next time the killer strikes we can prove that he's innocent!" explained Camille

"But what if he gets out?" asked Justin

"Well, I'm not the murderer so we don't have to worry about that at all." Declared Kendall, as he mentally decided to comply with Camille's amazingly brilliant plan about how to prove his innocence to the rest of the Palm Woods

* * *

><p>"Wait, they think that Kendall had something to do with it? That's ridiculous! He was with us all night! He couldn't have done it!" protested Katie, as James explained to her, Mrs. Knight, Jo, Carlos, and Logan what Camille's plan was.<p>

"We know, Katie, but they don't. If we can prove that Kendall wasn't there when tonight's murder happens, then we'll be able to prove that it's not him." Explained Logan, who had caught on to the plan rather quickly

"But- but whoever did it had long hair. Like a girl's!" said Mrs. Knight

They all stared at her in shock.

"How did you know that?" asked Jo slowly

Mrs. Knight looked at the confused faces of her' family' and realized that she had forgotten to explain her self to them.

" well, last night when I went down stairs, I think that I saw the killer running back up the stairs." Confessed Mrs. Knight

The teenagers were all in shock.

"Why didn't you tell anybody, mom?" questioned Katie

"Katie, I'm Kendall's mom. They know that I would do anything to protect you kids, but they wouldn't have believed me." Explained Mrs. Knight

"We love you too, Mrs. Knight." Said Carlos, as he wrapped his arms around her in a large hug

* * *

><p>Logan was a nice guy. That was pretty easy to tell just from looking at him. But Logan, like most people, could hold a pretty decent grudge against someone. Especially if that someone continually accused his best friend of being a murderer. But Heather just looked so… upset. Someone needed to go and comfort her seeing as Claire was dead and Camille was… somewhere that wasn't here.<p>

Just as he was about to go over and talk to her, Elle walked up to him.

"Hi, Logan! I was, um, just wondering if you could help me with this, um…, Algebra homework! I don't really get it." She said in a voice that let even Logan know that she was trying to flirt with him.

"Yeah, I would love to, Elle, but Heather's looking pretty upset and…" he began, but Elle cut him off

"Well, Taylor's over there comforting her right now, Logan. I think she'll be fine." Countered Elle

"Look, Elle, now isn't the best time for me, okay? I- I'm going through a lot. Maybe later." Said Logan, attempting to let her down gently

Elle felt herself grow more and more disappointed. Most boys would have thrown themselves at her feet and begged her to date them, yet the one boy she actually wanted continually blew her off. It just wasn't right. Something had to be done.

* * *

><p>Kendall couldn't sleep. He got up and continued pacing around his small confinement in the boiler room. Left to right, left to right. Corner to corner. Back to front. Door to wall. Over and over and over again he paced the small confinement of the boiler room. Then he heard it.<p>

Another victim had been claimed.

**Thank you! I'm sorry it was a bit shorter than usual! There just wasn't that much to write and I didn't want to drag it out. **

**Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I hate to tell you, but I don't write if I don't feel like people are interested. So please, take a minute and leave a review. After getting just one for the last chapter, I feel like no one is very interested.**

**Please review, subscribe, ect.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

"Now, another update on the Los Angeles power outage! The heat wave continues on, while the fires also continue to rage across almost the entire city. Now, more than ever, more reports of violence and destruction continue to pour in from all across the Los Angeles area. Already, the National Guard has been called in to help control the situation. has this been at all affective, Tom"

"As much as we wish this new strategy was working, Amy, it's not. The people of Los Angeles are still rioting in the streets and it looks as if they aren't going to be stopping any time soon, National Guard or no National Guard."

"Yes, it looks as if the only thing that can stop the chaos is the power coming back on."

* * *

><p>"Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." Whispered Camille over and over again as she stared at the two bodies laying on the floor in front of her. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god." She continued to whisper, as Logan stared ahead helplessly and James closed his eyes in horror.<p>

"What are we going to say? What are we going to do? It's all over. Everything is over." James whispered to himself

"Well, one thing's settled. We can easily prove that it's not Kendall." Whispered Logan solemnly as he stared at the two bodies in front of him

* * *

><p>Kendall looked up when he heard a knock on the door to the Boiler room as the door swung open. Justin entered looking, not goofy and happy like he usually was, but instead he was looking upset and even a little but scared too. Camille came in behind him, her eyes puffy and red from crying.<p>

"What happened, Justin? Can I leave now? Who's dead?" asked Kendall frantically as Justin sat down in the chair across from Kendall

"Um… Kendall, I don't know how to tell you, but it- um, the murderer, um, they killed…" Justin spluttered and stuttered as he tried to figure out a way to tell Kendall the news that would change his life forever.

"Oh my god. It's not Katie, is it?" gasped Kendall

"No-no! it's- it's not Katie." Soothed Camille.

Kendall only looked relieved for a second.

"Then who is it?" he asked

"It's- it's your mother, Kendall." Whispered Camille

Kendall's world went black.

* * *

><p>Katie sobbed and sobbed and sobbed some more. Usually, she prided her self on being a strong, unbeatable girl, but this was different. This was her mother. And even someone as strong as Katie has to break down sometimes.<p>

"It- it'll be alright, Katie." Whispered James, as he placed his arms around her and let her sob into his chest, probably ruining his lucky shirt in the process of comforting the girl who had become his younger sister, but he didn't care as much as he thought he would. For once, there was something- no, someone- more important than he was in the world.

"W- what am I going to do, James?" cried Katie, as James hugged her as kindly as he could

"I don't know, Katie. I's so sorry." He said softly

" Who's going to take care of us?" Katie continued to sob

"I- I don't know yet, Katie, but we'll figure something out." He soothed calmly

"Where's Kendall?" she cried

James was about to answer, but stopped. Who was going to tell Kendall? His mom and Dr. Wegener had both been killed. Their mother and their greatest resource had been eliminated all in one night. What on earth were they going to do now?

* * *

><p>"Oh, god, Carlos. What are we going to do?" mumbled Logan, his head in his hands, as he paced continually around the lobby, "What are we going to tell him? No, how are we going to tell him? I mean, we cant just show up and say, 'Hey you mom's dead! But on the bright side, now we know that it's not you!"' Logan imitated sarcastically<p>

"Wait, so it's really true?" said a voice from behind the two boys

Carlos and Logan turned around to see one of the last people they would have expected to see. Heather Merkel.

"Is- is it really true? Did Mrs. Knight really get killed too?" Heather asked again, more forcefully this time

Carlos and Logan looked at each other. Should they tell Heather? She hadn't exactly been supportive of them (or, more accurately, Kendall) and they weren't sure if they could trust her. But, she hadn't exactly been the same ever since Claire had been killed.

"Why do you care?" asked Logan cautiously

"So it is true?" she asked again

"Yes, it's true." Sighed Logan at last, giving into his annoyance with Heather's questions

Heather looked shocked, to say the least.

"how are they?" she asked almost immediately

"Why do you care?" asked Logan, suddenly suspicious as Carlos nodded in agreement

"I may not be the nicest person alive, Logan, but even I know that no one deserves to lose their mom when they're sixteen and twelve," Said Heather in a bit of a snappish tone. She knew that she had been pretty nasty to Kendall, and that Logan and Carlos had every right not to like her, but she wasn't some heartless bitch. She had feelings, believe it or not.

Logan and Carlos must have realized that they struck a nerve because they suddenly looked very, very guilty and uncomfortable.

"Um, he didn't mean it like that, Heather. It's just that you've never liked Kendall…" trailed off Carlos, in an attempt to seem like less of a jerk to Heather

"It's okay. I know I was a jerk to Kendall. Can you tell him that I'm sorry and would like to offer a fresh start?" she asked hopefully

Logan was suddenly very suspicious. How did she know that Kendall wasn't there? They hadn't told anyone. Unless, she was the killer!

"Wait, so you don't think that Kendall's the killer anymore?" asked Carlos

"i- I cant imagine anyone killing their own mother, Carlos. I'd rather admit that I was wrong than admit that someone could possibly be capable of- of _that_. I'd rather say I was wrong any day." Heather suppressed a shudder as she imagined what sort of person _was_ capable of killing their own mother.

"Hey- I'm really sorry about Claire." Offered Carlos out of the blue

Heather looked sad at the mention of her now dead best friend, but happy that someone had bothered to remember her amidst all of the chaos of two more murders. She gave a small little smile, and said:

"I'm so sorry about Mrs. Knight. I saw how close you were." She said quietly

"Are your parents here?" asked Logan, now remembering that he had never actually met Heather's parents

"Dad comes out for a week or so at a time. Most of the time it's just my older brother and i. he's studying at UCLA so I see him almost every day. Dad, my step mom, Maddie, and Alex are moving out from Tucson next summer, I think," she said softly

Carlos nodded in understanding.

"I miss my parents and sisters so much. I wish that they could move out here too, but I don't think that they can." Said Carlos solemnly

"It's so hard being away from them all the time. the last time I saw my little brother, he had grown four inches and lost five teeth." Heather said.

"Yeah, the only good thing is that we don't have to worry about them being… well, you know." Stated Logan awkwardly

The two other teenagers nodded along silently in agreement.

* * *

><p>Camille paced nervously around the small confinements of the boiler room. Kendall was not taking the news of his mother's death well at all. First he had sat down- too shocked to do anything else- but now he was up and angrier than she had ever seen him.<p>

"Look, I need to go see Katie!" he said for what felt like the millionth time in an hour

"And I am telling you, Kendall, that you cannot go and see her. If we let you out, the killer might try to kill you! I think that he or she is trying to target you, Kendall," Said Camille in a very serious voice. Kendall, however, did not care and continued to pace angrily around the room.

"Well, my sister is much more important, and secondly, what the hell gives you that idea?" asked Kendall accusingly

"Ummm, well first of all your hockey stick was at the scene of the crime! Your mother is now dead, and from the looks of it, they might have been after you too, because there was blood on the floor of your room!" snapped Camille

Kendall was about to make a smart comeback, when the door opened up and Logan, Justin, Heather, and Carlos slipped inside.

Kendall took on short look at Heather, and nearly snapped.

"What the hell is she doing here? You know that she thinks it's me! Why did you even-" began Kendall, but Heather cut him off

"Look, I'm sorry, Kendall, okay. I really thought it was you, but- but no one- i- I don't think that anyone could kill their own mother." Heather admitted quietly

Though Kendall still looked a bit unhappy with her presence, he sheepishly mumbled something that could have been him accepting her apology.

"Kendall, we know that you need to see Katie, but it isn't safe for you to go out there." Said Logan

"Yeah, we've been over this like ten times already." Snapped an extremely annoyed Kendall

"Yes, so we're going to sneak you out!' said Carlos excitedly

Kendall looked up at his four friends (and Heather). They were all smiling (sadly smiling, but still). And, for some reason, it made him feel better. Not by much, but it gave him a feeling of, well, hope to see all of them smiling. Maybe, he thought, everything would be all right.

* * *

><p>Heather opened up the large suitcase and Kendall burst out, gasping for air a bit too dramatically to be taken seriously. Logan rolled his eyes and Carlos cracked a small grin as he lay on the floor looking like a dying fish. Katie, however, was a different story.<p>

She had locked herself in her room almost all day, only letting James come inside to try and console her occasionally through out the day. Some how or another, James had convinced her to come outside and eat something.

The moment she saw Kendall, her jaw dropped open and she looked like she was going to cry. The moment Kendall saw her he stopped his ridiculous imitation of a dead fish, got up off of the floor, walked over to Katie, and wrapped his arms around her as the others backed out into Carlos's bedroom to give the two siblings a bit of privacy during this rough time.

* * *

><p>Elle Waldorf was not one to just lie down and take things. No, if she had a problem with you- or anything you did, say, or thought, for that matter- she would let you know about it. And she would let you know like you would never believe. Which is what she was about to do.<p>

Hair- no one out of place  
>Nails- French manicured by Geisel less than a week ago<br>Clothes- a slightly revealing tank top, short shorts, and a Gucci bag

Perfection at its finest.

She walked into the lobby, her head held high and back straight, only to find James blocking her path.

"Well, hello, madam…" he said in a horrible French accent as he kissed her hand

Elle rolled her eyes. It had been nice, at first, to have someone out there that loved her as much as she did, but James was no longer just admiring her: he was bordering on stalker like behavior. And that was not fun at all.

"James, would you mind going up to my apartment and making me some cookies?" she whined, batting her eye lids shamelessly

"Of course! I'll be right back with them!" he said as he ran off up the stairs to Elle's apartment

Elle looked around the lobby. There he was! It looked like he was teaching that one desperate fat girl about some math equation thingy that she was probably never actually going to use again, unless she lived to take her next math test.

"Logan! Can you come here?" she called in her flirtiest voice

Logan looked up from the large text book and spotted her.

"It's okay, I think I get it." Taylor said

"Okay, but if you need more help, feel free to drop by." Said Logan

"Are you sure? Kendall and Katie must be pretty shaken up by this." She said

"No, it'll be fine. We would love to see you." Said Logan as he got up and approached Elle, "Are you okay, elle?" he asked her

"Oh, Logan, I was only wondering why you've been avoiding me so much lately." She simpered

Logan looked a bit confused.

"What do you mean? I haven't been avoiding you at all." He said

"But you barely talk to me! Is it something I said? Or did?" she whined

"Ummm, well, I will be sure to talk to you more often, Elle." He said awkwardly

"Oh, you will? We should go get smoothies sometime!" she cried, hugging him around the neck

Logan was completely unsure of what to do at that point, so he awkwardly patted her on the back, until he heard a crash behind them and turned around. No one was there, but there was a broken plate filled with freshly baked cookies lying on the carpet.

"Here, I'll pick this up and make sure that no one steps on the glass." Said Logan thoughtfully

"Oh, you're so thoughtful!" praised Elle

"Logan! Logan! Oh, there you are!" said Jo, as she rounded the corner and caught sight of him

"What do you want, Taylor?" snapped Elle, using only Jo's last name and her demeanor changing drastically fast

"To talk to Logan," snapped Jo, "Privately."

Elle huffed and stomped away. Logan looked at Jo and nodded for her to continue.

"I feel that as Kendall's boyfriend, I have a right to know where he is. I know that you're hiding him, but where? I have a right to know!" snapped Jo again

Logan sighed. First, Heather, then Taylor, then Elle, and now Jo! What was with these women?

"Jo, we've been over this, and we feel that…" he began, but Jo cut him off

"Look, I know that you don't want me to know, for whatever reason, but don't you think I have the right to know?" countered Jo

Logan realized that this just wasn't going to end in his favor anytime soon.

"He's locked in the boiler room." Logan lied

Jo smiled and walked off. Behind the corner, Elle's eyes lit up. She had a brand new plan to make Logan her's. After all, the way to a boy is through his friends, they say. Or his stomach, but friends were a good resource too.

* * *

><p><strong>Over twenty five hundred words! Wow!<strong>

**So, in case you're confused, James saw Logan and Elle hugging and Dr. Wegener was the second person killed.**

**So… any guesses on who the killer is? I know, but I'd love to hear what you think!**

**Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**This is a repost due to the fact that I read through and found out that I had: one) not spell checked, and two) I left out an entire section. Oops! my bad!**

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you to everyone who reviewed, anonymous or other wise. Unfortunatley, I will not be updating for a while. More at the bottom of the chapter on this.<strong>

**I was actually very surprised at how many people think it's Heather. Someone (or someones…) did guess correctly about the killer. Not saying who, but they were correct. This chapter has a lot more clues about the killer, though. **

**Thank you, again, to everyone who reviewed! **

**Oh, and Kendall is a bit OOC in the later part of this chapter.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

"And now we turn to what is easily one of the worst man made disasters that we have seen in quite a few years. The Los Angles black out! We are now on day four with out power, and the city has quickly gone to hell. Even the calling in of the National Guard hasn't helped the situation of complete panic and chaos inside of the city in the slightest. The fires keeping the power off are still burning as strongly as they have been, and the weather has not been helping in the slightest."

"Yes, unfortunately for the all of the firefighters, National Guard, power plant workers, and, in general, the people of the Los Angeles area, this heat wave is not expected to end any time soon. Temperature are expected to reach as high as one hundred and six degrees in the next few days and there is not the slightest chance of rain for a few weeks at this rate."

"It really is becoming hell on earth, isn't it?"

* * *

><p>Camille was bored. That was all there was too it. One person could only talk to Justin for so long before they wanted to cry themselves to sleep. It was all video games, cop shows, and hot actresses and models with Justin.<p>

"Justin, who do you think the killer is?" asked Camille out of the blue

Justin looked startled, almost as if he hadn't known that there was a killer in the hotel in the first place. Although, now that Camille thought about it, Justin wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the pack and might not actually have realized that he wasn't still on a cop show.

"Well, I- I really have absolutely no idea, Camille." He said thoughtfully

She nodded solemnly in agreement. She couldn't imagine anyone that could kill all of these people in cold blood. Except for Elle, maybe, but even she had to have feelings somewhere deep down inside of her. They would be hidden very, very, deep down.

"I can't even imagine Elle doing this." Admitted Camille

Justin nodded and the two fell into a comfortable silence.

* * *

><p>Camille woke up to a scream.<p>

"Justin? Justin?" she called into the darkness

"RUN! Get- ough!" Camille felt the force of the blow that had gotten Justin through the wall that she was leaning against. It must be the killer! She made a break for the door, only to be hit across the back with a large, long, heavy object.

"Ouugh!" she grunted as she grabbed desperately for the handle, only to instead, grab the light switch instead.

She turned around and would have died from the shock if one of the people that she was most sure she could trust hadn't hit her over the head again with a softball bat.

* * *

><p>"I still don't get why you didn't let me stay in the boiler room last night if you were just going to put me back in there this morning, you guys." Muttered Kendall, as the four boys approached the boiler room early that morning.<p>

"We already told you, Kendall," began Logan, "We think that the killer's after you from the looks of the apartment when… well, when we had you locked in here." Said Logan, carefully to avoid the still touchy subject of Mrs. Knight's death

"Yeah, but cant I just stay with Katie? This is going to be so hard on her!" pleaded Kendall desperately

"Well, it'll be pretty hard on her too if her older brother gets killed." Replied James

Kendall was about to snap back when Carlos stepped in.

"Look, either way, isn't it best if you just hide out in here until we get this whole thing sorted out?" pleaded Carlos as Logan fiddled with the lock on the door to the boiler room

As Kendall and James sighed and glanced guiltily at each other with slightly apologetic looks over their recent argument, Logan opened the door to the boiler room and nearly passed out. It was covered in the blood of Camille and Justin.

* * *

><p>The lobby was silent. It was completely silent. No one could believe it because no one knew who would ever want to hurt Camille or Justin. They were two of the nicest and most liked people at the Palm Woods hotel and no one could imagine who would want to hurt them.<p>

Almost the entire hotel had gathered in the lobby in a sort of a wake for the two most liked and appreciated Palm Woods residents.

Kendall sat alone outside by the pool. He couldn't believe it. Camille was… gone! She just couldn't be gone, she was… she was Camille! She was the sweetest, nicest, and happiest person that he had ever known. He just… he just couldn't believe that she was gone.

"Hey, Kendall," said a flirty voice above him.

Kendall looked up only to find himself staring at the last person he wanted to see. It was Elle.

"What do you want?" he groaned

"So, look, your friend Logan seems really nice, but he wont-" she began, but Kendall cut her off

"Doesn't this seem like a bit of an inappropriate time to talk about stuff like this, Elle?" asked Kendall bluntly

She got a sour look on her face and stormed away, taking a swing at Taylor as she walked by.

"Hey, I am so sorry about what happened, Kendall." Said Taylor, as she approached him

He looked up at her. She was just standing there awkwardly like she wanted to say something important but couldn't work up the courage to do so.

"You can sit down, you know." Said Kendall because she was still standing in front of him

Taylor nodded and sat down quickly.

"Where have you been? I heard that you were the one in the boiler room." Whispered Taylor nervously as she took a seat next to the obviously stressed blonde singer

Kendall was surprised by this remark. If the unpopular Taylor knew about where he had been hiding out for the past two days, then how many other people knew "Master Plan" to keep him safe and hidden? Thank god they had realized that it wasn't working.

"Where did you hear that?" he asked cautiously

"I overheard one of the Jennifers telling the other about it." Taylor said, "I think people found out this morning, from the way that the two of them were talking about it. It seemed like pretty recent gossip to me, but they are saying that you might have done it now."

"Urgh!" Kendall groaned helplessly. There was absolutely nothing else that he was capable of doing. He was motherless, people probably thought that he was the killer, and the real killer was also after him! He would have asked if things could get any worse, but he could already feel where a zit was beginning to form, so he took the option of staying silent.

"I'm really sorry, you know." Taylor said quietly

That was something that Kendall really appreciated and liked about Taylor. She was quiet when you needed her to be. She wasn't constantly trying to get attention like Jo and Elle always seemed to be. Why, just this morning, she had cornered him twice! Once she was asking where he had been for the past few days, the other she was crying about Camille and Justin and looking for some sympathy. As if the rest of the Palm Woods wasn't just as upset as she was. _Now, now, Kendall_, said the little voice in his head, _everyone handles grief differently. Just relax._

So, instead of thinking about how terribly complicated his life was becoming, he muttered a quick "Thanks" to Taylor and put his head in his hands. She reached over and patted his shoulder awkwardly as he groaned in frustration.

Elle watched on from behind her magazine in fury. Nothing she had tried so far was working! She needed a whole new, fail safe plan, and fast!

* * *

><p>Logan was going to kill her. She was the only one that knew besides the band and Katie, and none of them would tell. They shouldn't have trusted her in the first place; she was just bad news in general. My god, she was probably the killer! He should have known!<p>

And there she was. The spawn of Satan himself. And she was just sitting there eating an apple even though she had probably just murdered one of her best friends. It made him sick to the stomach just to think if how terrible someone must be to do that. He could throw up, it was that revolting.

He gritted his teeth and approached her.

"Heather! Can I please talk to you?" he hissed through his clenched teeth

She looked up from her book; her eyes red and make up running down her face. Logan instantly felt horrible, but reminded himself that she was the only other person he had told and was, there for, logically, the killer.

"Yes?" she croaked out.

_Oh, god! _Thought Logan, _even her voice sounds horrible! Maybe it wasn't her! But it had to be. There wasn't anyone else that it could be!_ So, he cleared his throat and spoke to Heather in the kindest, yet angriest, voice he could come up with.

"Did you tell anyone about Kendall?" he hissed, in a voice that just made him sound as if he was a bit constipated

"What? No! Why on earth would I do that?" she asked incredulously

"Well, the killer had to have found out somehow!" whispered Logan quietly

"Well, it must have been someone else that spilled the beans!" she snapped quietly as she got up and walked away

Logan sat and thought quietly about it for a minute. Carlos, Katie and Kendall had been in the room all afternoon. James had come down, said something to Elle, and then gone back upstairs. What had he done? He had gone down to the lobby, helped Taylor with her math problems, talked to Elle, and then talked to Jo. Had he let it slip to one of them? He didn't think so. Taylor was all math problems, Elle was… really weird, and Jo had asked… about Kendall.

Oh, shit buckets.

That phrase "Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones" was starting to make a lot of sense right about now.

* * *

><p>Carlos couldn't eat. He felt so sick. He had for a while, now. It made him sick. This whole situation did. It was just unbelievable to him that someone could take the life of another person. And this… well, this just made him sick. He had barely eaten in days and he could barely sleep either. It was horrible. He… he just wanted this all to end. He couldn't take it anymore.<p>

He hoped that someone caught this killer and fast, because it was starting to kill him too.

And Carlos did not want to die.

* * *

><p>"Jo, did you tell anyone?" Logan asked, trying not to sound the least bit suspicious<p>

"About what, Logan?" asked Jo

"About Kendall being locked in the boiler room?" Logan hissed

Jo looked appalled.

"Why on earth would I have done that?" she gasped, astounded, "He's my boyfriend, Logan, and I love him. I would never tell anyone where he was hiding out, especially if there was somebody after him!" she defended loyally as she turned and walked away from him.

* * *

><p>"Thanks, Taylor," Said Kendall quietly as they walked back up the stairs to their apartments.<p>

"You're welcome, Kendall. You looked like you needed someone to listen to you." She said

She had stopped next to her door, and Kendall was suddenly aware of how close he was to her. He was also slightly aware of how much this was beginning to look like one of those terribly cheesy chick flicks that made him want to puke.

Taylor blushed slightly, and Kendall was suddenly aware of how pretty she actually was. Most people were completely turned off by her because she wasn't a stick thin Hollywood model, but it just fit for her. It was so odd to him.

"You're great, Taylor, you know that, right?" he said

"I guess," she replied humbly, her ears now turning red as well

And Kendall leaned down and kissed her. It was just a quick peck really, but it made her eyes get all big and then she got even redder and so he kissed her again. He kissed her better, this time. The kiss was longer too. And there was more meaning in it as well because she kissed him back that time.

* * *

><p>Jennifer was trying to fall back to sleep which was odd, because she could usually sleep through just about anything. But honestly, it sounded like whoever was above her was bowling while wearing steel toed boots!<p>

She could probably risk going upstairs and yelling at who ever it was that was making so much noise at this hour of the night. Chances were that the killer wasn't even planning on striking tonight (even though he or she had done so with out fail for the past four nights in a row) and besides, she wasn't a threat to anyone, and they all knew it. She would be perfectly safe if she went up there to tell that ass hole in the apartment above her to shut up while she was trying to get her beauty sleep. And besides, it was totally worth it.

Jennifer swung her legs off of the side of her bed, grabbed her fluffy pink bath robe, and headed off towards the apartment above her.

* * *

><p><em><strong>IMPORTANT!<strong>_** This is my last update before my back packing trip (I will be gone for two weeks!) so if I die, I will have one of my siblings or friends post an announcement, my story plan, any chapters I might have written, and who the killer is. I am expecting to live, though, unless I get a bee sting on my throat, which is quite unlikely. So I am very sorry, but no updates until I get back in about two weeks! Thankfully for all of you, I have a bit of the next chapter written, so hopefully I can update as soon as I get back! **

* * *

><p><strong>So… who could it be? The plot thickens… <strong>

**Sorry about my soon to be lack of updates!**

**Review anyways, please! I like to know that people are still interested! **


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm back! Backpacking was amazing and I actually completely forgot everything that I was planning on doing with the story, so let's all cross our fingers and hope that I didn't lose my touch while climbing mountains, big spooning brownie dough (which, no matter how good brownie dough is, is not fun when there's seven pounds of it), praying that our water chemicals worked and that we don't all get Guardia, and getting snowed on. And yes, it really did snow. I almost cried I was so upset. **

**Also, if I didn't respond to your review this weekend, I am so sorry! I think I did, but I'm not sure… Tell me if I forgot to! I got home at like seven and just crashed, I was so tired! **

**This chapter was supposed to have the chase scene in it, but I just couldn't make it fit right! The next chapter will have it at the beginning. I was very surprised at how many people thought that Jo was the killer. Maybe she is, maybe she isn't, but you'll know for sure who it really is with in the next three or four chapters. I also have a reason why **_**he **_**or**_** she**_** committed all of the murders. Do you have a reason?**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six<strong>

"Well, it has now been exactly one week since the entire Los Angeles area lost power, and things are not looking up for the residents. Reports continue to pour in about raping, looting, and killing all across the area, even in some of the nicest suburban areas. Fires continue to rage in not only the power plants, but also across the city, and the presence of the National Guard does not seem to have helped in the slightest."

"Yes, even though many of us wish we were some of the fabulous living in Hollywood, I don't think any of us envy them right now."

* * *

><p>"Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." Jennifer whispered to herself, as she stumbled down the stairs from the third floor down to the second floor, nearly falling more than once on the way, "Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god."<p>

She stumbled over to the door to her apartment and pushed open the door that she had stupidly left unlocked while she was going upstairs to yell at her neighbor for making so much noise. She stumbled into the small living room and then into her bedroom.

"oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." She continued to whisper as she collapsed onto her bed and curled up into a small, shaking ball. "oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." She continued to whisper as she wrapped her hands in her hair and began to shake uncontrollably

"Taylor… oh my god." She whispered as the tears began to fall uncontrollably onto her bed sheets

* * *

><p>Heather Merkel walked up the stairs that led to the fifth floor. Even though she had never really spent the time getting to know Taylor, she had been craving the company of another teen aged girl that didn't call her fat every few second (Elle), didn't go every where with someone who had the exact same name (the two remaining Jennifers), or wasn't trying to constantly win back the attention of her rather distant boyfriend (Jo).<p>

Heather opened the doors that led to the fifth floor hallway, and stepped into the dimly lit hallway. Taylor's apartment was almost exactly in the middle of the hallway, and all of the dim and flickering lights were kind of starting to creep her out. It reminded her of almost every horror movie know to man kind, and this was usually the part where the crazy chain saw murderer would leap out from behind a corner to kill the main character or a really hot chick.

_Well, I did eat a pretty big breakfast, so maybe that will keep me safe,_ Heather thought to herself desperately._ Or maybe I should go get someone to come with me. I'll bet that the boys all have pretty big hockey sticks. But if I chickened out and got scared then I would never hear the end of it_, she reminded herself.

It was too late. She had reached the door to Taylor's apartment.

She reached her hand up to knock, but when she did, the door swung open of its own accord. And then she saw the blood.

* * *

><p>Logan and James first heard the screaming while they were trying to make breakfast for Katie.<p>

"Oh my god." Katie said, "Do you think that it's the murderer?" she gasped

"Who knows? We'd better check it out, though." Said James, as Logan grabbed two hockey sticks and pulled a random hockey jersey (that just so happened to be Kendall's) over his head.

The two boys quickly ran up the stairs, too quickly to notice the blood stains on the floor between the fourth and fifth floor landings. As the two friends continued to run up the stairs, the screams got louder, but more gasping and breathless. As they opened the door and rounded the corner to the hallway, they saw none other than Heather, sitting on the floor gasping for breath, and staring at the open door in front of her. Logan and James rushed to her side.

"Heather, are you okay?" asked Logan as he grabbed her shoulders and looked at her

Heather's eyes were wide with fear, shock, and horror as she continued to gasp like Kendall had after they let him out of the suit case, only this time there was no joking involved. Especially after James turned away from Heather and looked through the open door that led into Taylor's apartment.

There was blood all over the floor, walls, and ceiling, and in the living room, he could just make out the legs of Taylor's body. He couldn't look any longer than a few seconds, though. It was just too horribly gruesome. There was blood everywhere. Already, the tears were beginning to form in his eyes and he just couldn't look anymore.

* * *

><p>Kendall couldn't believe it. She was gone. Taylor… sweet, kind, understanding Taylor was gone. How could anyone have done that to her? She was so nice and… he had kissed her, he reminded himself. He had cheated on Jo with her. And Taylor had kissed him back. She had been that infamously spurned "other woman" that every girl (and guy, to some extent) dreads finding out about.<p>

_But it wasn't like that_… the part of his brain that had taken over the previous night outside of Taylor's apartment, _things with Jo are, well, terrible and we all know it. You know that you would have dumped Jo for Taylor in a heartbeat if you had ever gotten the chance. Taylor wasn't being clingy and annoying. That's the only reason you ever started talking to her: Jo was being super clingy and annoying. So technically, this is all Jo's fault_.

_Whoa, whoa, whoa_! The more rational and kinder part of his brain snapped, _the only reason that Jo was being 'clingy' is because you were completely ignoring her. First it was the band, then it was the killer, and then it was Taylor. Maybe if you hadn't been ignoring her you two would still be going strong and you would have never kissed Taylor. This is really your fault, when you think about it._ _Yeah, that's right_, the annoying, rational part of his brain challenged_, I went there_.

Kendall groaned. The stupid, annoying, rational part of his brain was right, no matter how much he tried to pretend that it wasn't. There was really no one to blame for this huge, complicated mess of feelings except for himself.

Stupid teenage boy hormones.

* * *

><p>"Yes, but that still doesn't explain where Jennifer is!" screamed Jennifer at the top of her lungs<p>

"Look, calm down. All we have to do is just organize a little search party, or something, and I am sure that we will find her. The gates are still stuck, which means she couldn't have left, so we all know that she has to be around the Palm Woods somewhere." Said Logan calmly

Most of the remaining teenagers of the Palm Woods had gathered in the back lobby to discuss the most recent events that had transpired (namely, the gruesome murder of Taylor). James still had the two hockey sticks that he had grabbed, Logan was still wearing Kendall's hockey Jersey, and Heather was still completely speechless.

"Why should we waste our time looking for her? She's probably already dead." Said the always cynical Elle Waldorf

Jennifer gasped at the possibility, while Logan took the option of glaring at her.

"Even if she is, we still need to find her." Said Logan sternly

Elle simply scoffed and rolled her eyes as Logan began to get into his plan for how they would search for the missing Jennifer.

"So, each of us should get a partner and then we'll go look for Jennifer in different areas. When we're done, we'll meet back here and see who found her. If the search goes past dark, though, everyone go home and we'll meet here tomorrow." Logan explained to the small group of teens that has gathered in the back lobby

"Wait, what if one of us is the killer? Than whoever is left with the killer might get killed!" protested a girl named Kaylee

"Then we would have discovered who the killer is." Remarked Elle sarcastically

"Look, Elle, cut it out!" snapped Kendall

Just as Elle was about to make a snappy and cruel response, Logan stepped in.

"Let's just get into pairs, okay?" he said

* * *

><p>Everyone paired up reasonably fast, and in the end, only Jo, Heather, Elle, and the boys were left standing alone in the lobby.<p>

"So, how about Kendall and I go together, James and Elle go together, and the rest of you can be a three some." Suggested Jo

James was more than willing to go with that option, but Elle was slightly less than enthusiastic about the proposed arrangements.

"How about Logan and I, and James, Carlos, and Heather go as a group of three." She suggested coolly

"Um… how about Kendall goes with you, and Jo and James go together?" suggested Logan awkwardly, not wanting to be around Elle for any longer than he had to

"Yes. That sounds perfect, Logan." Said Kendall quickly, grabbing Elle and pulling her towards the second floor that they were assigned to search. In his desperate (yet successful) attempt to get away from his girlfriend that he had just cheated on, he seemed to have forgotten that he was getting stuck with Elle.

"What is up with Kendall?" asked Jo, to no one particular. No one answered. She groaned, and pulled James off towards the pool area where they would go to search for the blonde Jennifer. Or, more likely, the Blonde Jennifer's body.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Carlos, I'm going to go find Kendall and Elle. You and Heather are supposed to search the fourth floor, but she's looking kind of…" Logan gave a shrug in Heather's direction and Carlos saw exactly what he meant. Her face was a pale green color and she still had the same look of shock and horror that had been on her face earlier that morning.<p>

"Should I drop her off at the apartment?" asked Carlos quietly

Logan nodded in agreement, and then took off towards the stairs to follow Kendall and Elle.

* * *

><p>By the time Logan had caught up to Kendall and Elle, the two had already set each other off. From what Logan could gauge, Elle had said something about Kendall's singing and his hair, while Kendall had taken aim for Elle's roll in the movie version of "Wicked".<p>

"Whoa, whoa, hey!" said Logan as he found the two arguing near the stairwell, "We've been at it for what? Five minutes? Let's just forget about it, okay?" he said as he stepped between the two pissed off teen agers.

"Just watch it, eyebrows!" snapped Elle using a new and slightly more creative nickname for Kendall, who glared at her in disgust

Logan groaned internally, preparing himself for Kendall's heated response that he knew was coming. It was going to be a long search.

* * *

><p>"No, no, Carlos, I'll be fine. I'm sure. Let's just go, we're wasting a lot of time here." Said Heather adamantly as they walked past the second floor where Carlos had offered to take her back to the boy's apartment instead of having her search for the blonde Jennifer<p>

"But Heather, you still seem pretty sick," Carlos said in a worried voice

"I'm fine Carlos. Now let's go. Every second we stand around talking is another second that the other Jennifer could be getting killed." Heather snapped as she walked up towards the fourth floor

"Alright, alright. I guess you don't look too sick anymore," Carlos agreed

Carlos looked at her closely. In all honesty, Heather did look sick. Her usually tanned skin had a greenish tint to it that gave off the accurate impression of nausea, her curly brown hair was limp and frizzled, her hands were still shaking, and Carlos had seen her vomit three times that morning. The only thing that remained the same was the look of annoyance and accusation in her dark blue eyes. That signature look happened to be directed at him at the moment.

"Good. Now let's go." She said in a voice that didn't quite fool Carlos

* * *

><p>"James, why do you think that Kendall's been avoiding me?" said Jo in a soft, slightly upset voice<p>

The question caught James off guard. From what he could see, the two of them had been going pretty strongly, especially since the Palm Woods prom. But, he did notice that Kendall hadn't been spending as much time as he used to around Jo lately. Even before the black out fiasco.

"I don't know. Losing his mom has been really hard on him, you know, and he's been busy, but I don't think he's been _trying_ to avoid you. He probably didn't even realize that he wasn't spending a lot of time with you anymore. I mean, especially now with all of this shit that's been going down lately." Said James (surprisingly) thoughtfully

Jo nodded in understanding.

"I- I- Camille was the closest person that I ever lost. I- I don't know what to do. I don't know how to help him through this!" Jo sniffed

"What would you have wanted when you found out that Camille was gone?" asked James, desperate to help out the relationship of his best friend

"I just wanted a hug, you know. I- I don't know why, but I wanted a hug." Said Jo, after thinking for a minute

"Well, next time you see him give him a hug and the tell him that you want to spend more time together." Said James as if it was the most obvious thing in the world

* * *

><p>"Hello? Jennifer? Are you there? It's Carlos and Heather!" Carlos called desperately for what felt like the fiftieth time that day. At this point, even he had to admit that hope was slim.<p>

Heather sighed. This was the ninth apartment that they had searched on the fourth floor. Pretty soon they were just going to admit that she just wasn't there.

"Come on. We'd better go." Whispered Heather despondently

Just as Carlos was about to nod in agreement, they heard it. The sniffling sounds seemed to be coming from the back bedroom. The two teen agers looked at each other and ran straight to the bedroom and flung open the wooden door.

Laying curled up in the fetal position on the bed was blonde Jennifer. Her eyes were wide and bloodshot as her shaking hands grasped the large, baby blue pillow that she had wrapped her self around. Tear stains ran down her face and her hair was a mess. She seemed to be gazing at nothing.

"oh my god. Taylor…" she whispered as Carlos lifted her into his arms while Heather grasped her shaking hands.

* * *

><p>Kendall was going to kill Elle. It was all about her, her, her, her, and, once again, her! All she seemed to be capable of was talking about herself, herself, and, take a guess, herself! If she didn't shut up about herself and what ever stupid movie she was going to be in soon, he was seriously going to snap and kill her. Besides, people probably wouldn't mind it if he did.<p>

Logan seemed to notice his annoyance.

"Hey, how about you go find James and Jo and go with them." He suggested

As Kendall stomped off, Logan finally rounded on Elle.

"What's your problem, Elle? You don't have to treat him, or anyone else, for that matter, like shit all the time." he snapped

For once in her life, Elle Waldorf was caught off guard. She faltered for a second before responding.

"Look, just because I'm better doesn't-"

Logan cut her off.

"Just stop it, okay? You're not better than everyone else. If anything, you're worse. All you do is bring people down and make them feel terrible. I don't know why you do it, but it's getting old. So stop it. Try being nice, if you're even capable of it." He snapped harshly as he turned away from her.

Suddenly, he heard sniffing. He turned around and instantly felt terrible.

Elle Waldorf was crying. For real crying. Not her usual stage crying to get attention, but actual, legit crying. **(A/N: I cannot believe I just said "**_**legit**_**" in a story… I was at camp way too long…)**

"L- look, Elle you're probably a very nice person, you just need to-" Logan began in a desperate attempt to comfort the crying teen age girl

"oh, just stop it! I'm a bitch and I'll never be anything but a bitch, Logan. Admit it: you don't really think that I'm a nice person, no matter how deep you dig down!" Elle responded in a harshly cracked voice as she wiped the tears from her face

"Elle, there's a good person inside of everyone, okay?" Logan replied softly as he leaned down to kiss her cheek, "I'm going to go back down stairs and see if anyone found Jennifer. You stay safe, okay?" he instructed kindly

Elle blushed heavily as he hugged her and walked back to his apartment. Maybe there was still a bit of hope for her.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, that was one long chapter. It's almost three thousand words, not counting ANs. I was going to put the chase scene in it, but it would have been way too long! It'll be at the beginning of the next chapter! **

**Please review! You owe me! (And it makes me happy!)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Okay, I can perfectly envision the chase scene, but it took me forever to even just write this wimpy little "chase scene". They're really hard to write, you know! So do me a favor, and use your imagination. A lot.**

**This story is now rapidly coming to a close. I think that it may even be finished on my birthday (at the end of July). At this point, it looks like there are three more chapters after this, plus a possible epilogue. I have an idea for a sequel, though, so tell me if you'd be interested in reading it. If I decide to do the sequel, then the epilogue will just be information on it. **

**Anyways, read, review, and enjoy.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>

"Breaking news! Power Plant employees as well as firefighters claim to be able to now contain two of the four fires that erupted almost a week ago and has left the Los Angles area with out power for an entire week. The third fire has now been almost sixty percent contained and residents are expected to start receiving power soon, some as early as tomorrow night!"

"Yes, many police offices and hospitals will be the first ones to receive power. Residential areas will, unfortunately, be last, but the business and hotel districts are expected to receive power just after the Police stations and hospitals do."

"Yes, things finally seem to be looking up for Los Angeles."

* * *

><p>Elle was blushing and giggling like a fool as she returned to her apartment. Logan could see her as a nice person! He thought she was nice! (well, not really, but she convinced her self that he did, just a little bit.) And he had even kissed her. It was on the cheek, but still. At least he knew she was alive! She had hope! She could still make it with Logan.<p>

She gave a little skip and turned in mid air.

Then she saw it. The killer.

Of course, she didn't really know who the killer was or if the person behind her was, in fact, the killer, but Elle wasn't stupid and the killer was probably the only person who would be out this late at night carrying a baseball bat.

And because Elle wasn't stupid, she did the only logical thing that she could do. She ran.

If she could make it to the stairs, then she was safe for sure. At least five other people lived on the floor below her, and they were all light sleepers. All she had to do was wake them up, and she would be safe for sure.

Unfortunately, it turns out that the killer wasn't exactly a slow runner. Elle heard the killer's loud, quick foot steps before she felt the heavy impact in between her shoulders that brought her to her knees at the killer's feet.

Elle coughed, blood splattering onto the hands that she was leaning on.

Quickly, she pushed herself up and made a break for the door only a few yards away.

As she was slipping across the floor, she heard a grunt that vaguely sounded like "Oh no you don't!" and then felt the blow she knew was coming. It hit her right across the shoulders and she fell again. She pushed up one last time, determined not to meet the same fate as the ones before her. She slipped towards the door again, and then felt another blow across her shoulders as the killer approached her from behind. This time, however, she fell with her face up. If she was going to die like this, she was determined to at least know who was doing it.

She gasped. How could she have been so clueless?

All this time she should have known that the killer had been-

And then it all went black.

* * *

><p>Jennifer walked along the brightly lit hallway of the studio that she filmed at. It was so good to be back.<p>

Hopefully Ashton would be her make up artist today and then Paulo would be in charge of styling her beautiful, blonde hair. Those two were, by far, the best. Ashton could really bring out her eyes and Paulo would do anything fro up sweeps to curls if she asked. Maybe then she and the other Jennifers could meet up for lunch at Le Fantaisie, the newest, fanciest and more luxurious French restaurant in all of Los Angeles.

_You know what_, she thought, _maybe they should invite that girl Taylor along. Sure, she would never be a Jennifer, but she seemed nice enough and maybe it was about time to start being a bit nicer to other people at the Palm Woods. And really, Taylor wouldn't be that bad of a person to start out with._ _At least she was nicer than that Elle girl. _

_Yes_, she de cided_, I'll call them and have them invite Taylor along too. _

She smiled slightly as she turned the corner to her dressing room door. She opened it up and gasped at what she saw. There was already someone in her dressing room chair, and she knew exactly who it was. It was the killer.

"Jennifer," said the high pitched, mechanical voice, "Jennifer, why must you cause so much trouble?" it sing songed, almost like a robot.

Jennifer slipped as she began to back up, her eyes searching wildly for anyone who might help her, but the set was deserted.

"No, no! I'm not trying to cause any trouble! You're the one causing all the trouble! You're the one killing people who think that they're your friends!" Jennifer wailed desperately as the killer stood up, crossed the room, and crouched next to her.

"I know you saw what I did to Taylor, Jennifer," it whispered, "and you know what that means? It means that you're next. You saw, so now you're going to be next," whispered the killer, as Jennifer began to wail and the faces of all the victims began to swirl around them.

"Jennifer, Jennifer," she called as the face of her best friend swam past her.

"Jennifer, Jennifer," the faces seemed to call out to her, "Jennifer, Jennifer," they called and called, "wake up, wake up." She blinked, confused at their words. "Wake up, wake up!" they continued to shout at her.

"Wake up!" said Carlos, as he shook Jennifer awake

She gasped and then blinked around at her surroundings. She was covered by an unzipped Scooby Doo sleeping bag and laying and a bright orange couch. There was a swirly, yellow slide in the corner and bright sunlight streamed in from between the blinds that hung over the large windows behind Carlos's helmet clad head. She turned to look behind her. Katie sat at the counter on a bar stool, while Logan and James attempted to make breakfast.

"What- what's going on?" mumbled Jennifer, looking around confusedly

"Well, no one could find you yesterday, so we split up to search for you. It was getting late and then Heather and I found you I your apartment and decided to take you back here to keep an eye on you." Explained Carlos softly

The front door opened suddenly. Jennifer gasped, her heart started up, and then Heather stumbled in, looking as if she had just woken up from a very deep sleep.

"Hey, Heather," Logan said as she collapsed onto a bar stool next to Katie's.

She mumbled something indecipherable as a response and then yawned loudly. She reached out towards the large box of Lucky Charms that was resting on the counter next to Katie. Katie quickly snatched them out of her reach.

"Not so fast, Merkel," Katie said jokingly

"Awww, come on!" whined Heather

"Okay, how about the two of you just share?" suggested Logan

"Logan, we were joking around. You don't have to be such a kill joy." Said Katie

"I don't joke when it comes to Lucky Charms" said Heather in a pseudo serious voice that made Katie laugh a little bit.

Just as Katie was about to respond with an equally sarcastic comment, they heard running outside of their door. Everyone jumped up. At this point, no one would have been surprised if the killer was out there waiting to kill them all. The door burst open, and the curly haired Jennifer stumbled in, looking distressed and gasping for air.

"Jennifer, what is it? What's wrong?" the other Jennifer gasped as she rushed towards the door

"It- it's Elle. We're all meeting down in the lobby." She gasped

* * *

><p>"Well, even though it's easily said that even though none of us are really going to miss her all that much, even Elle didn't deserve to die like that." Kendall declared solemnly.<p>

The rest of the assembled teens in the lobby all nodded quietly in agreement. The heavy silence that fell among them could have been cut with a knife. Even Carlos had his suspicions about who the killer was. And it had to be one of them.

"I know who it is." Said the curly haired Jennifer, as she rose dramatically from her seat

They all gasped. Could it be true? Did she really know? Or was this some sort of cruel trick that she had concocted just to get their hopes up?

"The killer is either James…" she paused dramatically, waiting for James' protests of outrage to quiet, "Or Jo," She concluded, as Jo looked up at her in astonishment, her mouth dropping open as the rest of the assembled teens gasped.

"Wait, where's your proof?" questioned Kendall. After all, his best friend and his girlfriend were on the stand here. He wanted some proof.

"Well, I know for a fact that James had been rejected by both Jennifer and Elle not long before their deaths. Dr. Wegener would have been able to tell if it was him. Justin could have been competition. After all, he asked Jennifer out too, and she accepted," Accused Jennifer.

Though Kendall was convinced of his best friend's innocence, he could diffidently see Jennifer's thinking pattern in her speech. A lot of these accusations made sense. If it had been anyone but James, he would have agreed with her.

"What about Jo, though?" Kendall asked

"Easy. It's mostly girls dead. She saw them as competition." Accused the curly haired Jennifer

"But why would I have killed Camille? She was my best friend." Said Jo, her voice almost bordering on the edge of tears

"Who knows? Maybe you got too into it." Declared Jennifer

"Or maybe you got too into it, Jennifer. Maybe the only reason that you're accusing people is because you're the killer." Said Heather thoughtfully

"You know what, Heather's right," said Jo, "If you weren't the killer, wouldn't you be scared that you'd be the next one to die by accusing people?"

"Unless she actually knew who the killer was and was accusing others to help get them off of their back," said James, his eyes never leaving the blonde Jennifer's face, though she looked terrified at all of the conflict

"Well, maybe I thought that other people would agree with me and that we would lock the killers away." Said Jennifer, her eyes switching from James to Jo as she spoke

"Guys, guys, fighting amongst ourselves isn't going to help anyone. It'll only tear us apart." Said Kendall, trying desperately to keep the peace

"Well, 'amongst ourselves' happens include a cold blooded killer!" Heather practically screamed in Kendall's face, the others nodding in agreement

"Look, either way, this isn't helping! Maybe we should just try to wait it out." Suggested Logan

"Yeah, and go back to being sitting ducks? Um, no thanks. I think that I'm going to try and catch this killer myself," Said the curly haired Jennifer, as she walked out of the lobby that was filled with tension. "If anyone cares to join, drop on by. I'll be watching." And with that, she left.

* * *

><p>'I mean honestly, my ideas aren't that bad! In fact, most of them are pretty good! Why won't anybody listen to me? I mean, come on!" complained an exasperated Logan while Heather finished another chapter of <span>Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince<span>.

"Maybe it's because Jennifer's the killer and she knows that waiting around will only result in her getting caught." Said Heather in the same monotone voice that she used in school and while talking to 'problem customers'

"You know, you could listen." Snapped Logan

"Well, so could you! The truth is, Logan, we're all terrified and so far, waiting around for the phone lines to come back on or the gates to open just hasn't really been working so far. Everyone is worried that they'll be the next victim if they do nothing. In fact, a bunch of parents are going to try and find a way out back by the golf courses tonight. That's how desperate people are." Explained Heather

Logan was surprised at this.

"Really? Since when?" he asked

"No clue, but I heard Tyler's mom talking about it with Mr. Mitchel the other day." Said Heather

"Do you think that it'll work?" asked Logan

"With our luck, no." said Heather

* * *

><p>Carlos rolled over and groaned. He was so hungry! He just had to get something to eat, but Logan would kill him if he took any of the food that they had left. They were running low because so much of their stuff had spoiled in the never ending heat wave.<p>

Looking back, the vending machines wouldn't have had any power anyways so there had really been no point in going to get a snack from them. Until he heard it.

He peaked around the corner. Curly haired Jennifer was lying on the ground, screaming as loud as she could.

"Everyone, the killer is-" but her last words were cut off as the softball bat hit her once more.

Carlos was shocked. He had to tell the guys who it was . he took off, not realizing how much noise he was actually making.

He was almost at the door when he heard it. He knew that it was now or never.

"Guys, I know who the killer is! It's -" and then the world went black around him.

* * *

><p><strong>Don't hate me for ending like that! I have to keep you hanging for one last chapter, even though you can all probably guess who it is. <strong>

**Even though you probably hate me, review anyways! I'll write faster (kind of).**


	9. Chapter 9

**This chapter is brought to you early due to the fact that all of my friends happened to be in foreign countries to celebrate our independence. Oh, the irony.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Eight<strong>

Katie tossed and turned. Then she tossed and turned some more. She flipped onto her stomach. Then she switched to her back. She gave her left side a short try. Then it was back to lying on her stomach again. And then she gave her back another try, just for the heck of it. But no matter what position she lay in, she still wasn't comfortable. She groaned in frustration.

"Jesus Christ on a bike, Katie. Cant you just go to sleep?" snapped Heather from the bunk below her

"You know, I for one would sleep better if I was back in my own bed in my own apartment," Katie replied snappishly

"Cant you both just try being still and quiet? You'll keep us up all night," said the blonde Jennifer from the trundle bed that had been pulled out.

The three girls were all attempting to fall asleep in Heather's seventh floor apartment. Both Heather and Jennifer had been terrified at the thought of sleeping alone and had arranged a "sleep over" in Heather's apartment because she had a bunk bed. When Kendall found out that Heather also had a trundle bed, he had forced Katie to attend as well. Apparently, he and the rest of the guys had been planning on discussing who the killer was, and they didn't want Katie to hear. Or, at least, that had been what he had told Heather. She figured that Katie had been driving him a bit crazy lately and they needed some space.

"Heather, I've been wondering about something." Asked Katie suddenly

"If I say yes, will you shut up and let me sleep?" asked Heather exasperatedly

Katie figured that this meant she could continue on with her question.

"Why do you have a three person bunk bed if you're almost always here alone?" she asked

"You know, that's a good question" agreed Jennifer

"Well, my cousin Mac and I used to have sleep overs almost every night when we lived in Tucson, and sometimes Claire would show up and maybe bring our friend Lillie with her too. And Mac and I would share the top bunk, Lillie would get the bottom, and then we'd make Claire sleep on the trundle bed. We were all pretty close." Said Heather

"! IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIISSSSSSSSSSSS!"

"Oh my god! That sounds like Carlos!" gasped Jennifer, as she began to push herself off of her bed

"Wait, no! we can't go down there!" cautioned Heather as she reached over to grab Jennifer

"Well, why not?" challenged Katie, as she swung her legs over the side of her bunk bed

"Because we'll be killed, you guys!" said Heather as she attempted to push Katie's legs back onto the bed

"But-" began Katie, but Jennifer cut her off

"No, no, no, Katie. Heather's right. If we go downstairs to help, we'll be killed. There's nothing that we can do. We just have to wait it out." Jennifer decided, as Katie reluctantly swung her feet up onto the top bunk of the bunk bed.

* * *

><p>"GUYS! I KNOW WHO THE KILLER IS! IT'S-"<p>

The door to apartment 2J burst open as Kendall ran out holding a hockey stick. His vision was still blurry from the deep sleep he had just pulled himself out of, but there was no way that he could mistake the person in front of him.

"What- wha-" Kendall's sentence was cut off as the softball bat hit him directly in the stomach. Kendall collapsed into a heaping bundle on the floor before the second blow to his head sent him into a world of pure darkness.

* * *

><p>Logan was the second one out of the door to apartment 2J. he too had his hockey stick when he exited the apartment, but stopped when he saw the familiar, friendly face. He lowered the stick and was about to give a warm, friendly greeting, when the bat hit him in the ribs.<p>

"J- J" he began to splutter as the blow to his head came and the world around him dissolved into darkness.

* * *

><p>"Okay, this is ridiculous. We have to go find out who it is! This might be our only chance!" pleaded Katie for what felt like the hundredth time that night<p>

"No! You know that we can't! we'll be killed for sure if we do!" argued Heather

"Yeah. Jo's tough enough to get us both. I mean, Taylor almost had her…" Jennifer trailed off as she saw the astounded looks of the other two

"You know who it is?" whispered Katie

Jennifer looked around frantically, as if she was looking for an escape route.

"I- I don't know! It was dark, and I couldn't see her face, but it was diffidently a girl with long hair, and, well, Heather, you're the only other girl with long hair at the Palm Woods, so…" Jennifer trailed off, unsure of what to expect from Heather or Katie

"Oh my God. It must be Jo." Heather said to herself

"Well, what do we do? And that girl Kristin has long hair too, what if it's her?" Katie reasoned

"Well, we could go try and sneak a look at who's out there!" suggested Jennifer

"Yeah, that could…" Heather began before Katie cut her off

"Oh my God! We're so stupid! The video tape from the boiler room has been in there this whole time!" she exclaimed

Heather and Jennifer gasped.

"Come on! We have to go find it!" said Katie as she got up and grabbed her shoes

"Can't we wait until morning?" asked Jennifer

"If we wait until morning, it'll be too late!" snapped Heather as she jumped off of the bunk bed.

* * *

><p>"Guy's, what's going on? Why are you all yelling?" asked James, as he sauntered towards the open door of the apartment<p>

WHACK!

James collapsed on the floor, a nice, large red mark that would soon become a fairly purplish bruise across his pretty face. The killer bent over and heaved the singer into the shopping cart that already held three other unconscious boy band members.

* * *

><p>Heather stood on top of the flimsy card table that had been set up inside of the boiler room back when Camille had first suggested this plan. It was rather unnerving to be inside of a room covered in the blood of some of the girls' closest friends.<p>

"Heather, do you have it yet? I really want to get out of here." Whispered Jennifer, her voice hoarse and eyes wide with fear

"I think I do," said Heather, as she fumbled with the video camera attached to the wall. The girls heard a snap, and it fell into her outstretched hands.

"Okay, now let's go," said Jennifer, as all three girls made a bee line for the door

Suddenly, they heard footsteps in the hallway, and what sounded like screechy wheels. All three girls stopped, as they realized that the killer was right outside of the door. The tree barely even trusted themselves to breath. Eventually, though, the steps and screeching faded down the hallway that led towards the basement.

"Let's go! We have to find them!" said Heather, as she prepared to bolt out the door, Katie fast on her heels, but Jennifer's voice stopped them.

"No! Wait for just a second, you guys. We have to know who the killer is first, otherwise we might run into the middle of a fight and not know who to side with!" reasoned Jennifer

"Alright," said Katie, "but you'd better hurry."

The three girls gathered around the small screen on the camera to watch the events unfold. First, Kendall was dragged in by Justin and Camille. Then, he paced alone for a long, long time. then, The boys, Camille, and Heather came to let him out. Soon, it was just Justin and Camille. And then, the lights went out. The three girls gasped and groaned in defeat. Until the flashlight Camille was holding came on, that is.

* * *

><p>Kendall groggily woke up to the sound of feet falling on the floor in rhythm. Someone was pacing across the floor. Kendall looked around him into the pure darkness that surrounded him. He tried to move his hands, but found that they had been bound together by a piece of rope. After attempting to move his feet, he found that they too had been tied to something: the chair he had woken up on. He shifted uncomfortably from side to side, hoping to loosen the bonds that held him captive. Then he felt it. He wasn't alone.<p>

For all Kendall knew, they were being pranked by Katie and the girls, or the killer had them held hostage in his lair. He wasn't quite sure if he wanted to risk it yet.

He was still debating whether or not to speak when James started screaming.

A flashlight came on and was hung up on a loop in the ceiling to act as a sort of makeshift light. Kendall looked up and saw, to his relief, a familiar, friendly face. It was his girlfriend, Jo.

"Oh, thank god! I knew that it was just you guys trying to prank us! But I gotta say, it's kind of bad timing, don't you think?" said Kendall, as Jo looked on in confusion

"What do you mean, Kendall?" asked Jo

Kendall felt his heart come to a screeching halt. They weren't safe after all.

"So the killer kidnapped us? The killer kidnapped us all?" asked Kendall, his voice grave

"Oh, no, oh, no! I think that the killer broke my nose when he hit me! I'll never be beautiful again!" wailed a completely hysterical (and rather oblivious) James

"James, you, me, Carlos, Logan, and Jo have all just been kidnapped. We should probably be thinking about more important things than your face." Snapped Kendall, to jo he said "Can you get to work on untying us? The sooner we get out of here, the better."

"Sure." Said Jo

Suddenly, they heard a groaning. Carlos and Logan were waking up. Jo stopped untying Kendall as she rose stiffly.

"What- where are we?" moaned Logan as he blinked open his groggy eyes

Kendall began to explain everything to Logan as fast as he could. Carlos, however, was strangely silent. He hadn't taken his eyes off of Jo since the moment he had woken up. Jo was, strangely enough, staring straight back at him.

"So now, Jo's going to untie us and we'll get upstairs, the grab Katie and make a break for it." Explained Kendall to Logan

"Kendall, don't listen to-" Carlos began, but he was suddenly cut off

"Carlos, please…" began Jo

"Kendall, don't trust Jo! She-"Carlos started again

"Wait, what? Why wouldn't I trust her?" said Kendall

"Carlos, think about this." Jo pleaded softly again

"No. Kendall, she's-"

"Carlos, don't!" Jo nearly yelled

"She's the killer, Kendall! She was killing Jennifer when I found her!" Carlos exclaimed

Kendall looked into Jo's face and was scared to see how drastically her expression had changed. He was about to meet a new side of his sweet, innocent girlfriend.

* * *

><p><strong>The last chapter will be up this weekend (I hope!) or the 23<strong>**rd**** of July (my birthday!). **

**I'm still debating a sequel or an epilogue. Tell me what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10

**I had a lot of computer trouble getting this up due to a lot of computer trouble and the fact that I have literally been at home for about four of the last thirteen days. First one of my brothers decided to get sick and I had to stay with my cousins, then I had to help at VBS, then Harry Potter came out and we had this huge movie marathon and I was super tired and shit like that. But now I'm home sick with nothing bugging me except my stuffy nose, so I'm about to attempt a miracle and write an entire chapter in two days or less. Wish me luck!**

**Funny story: at the midnight premier of Harry Potter, everyone that had read the books stood up and cheered when Molly Weasley had her big line during the battle. If you saw it/ read the book you know what I'm talking about.**

**This is the last chapter before acknowledgements and the epilogue/ possible sequel.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Ten<strong>

"No…" Kendall whispered, but the look on Jo's face was enough proof for all of the boys.

"Kendall, it's really true!" Carlos pleaded unnecessarily

Jo turned around, and, in one fluid motion, hit Carlos over the head with a hockey stick. All three boys, no matter how manly and tough they claimed they were, could not contain their gasps of shock and horror at Jo's brutal actions.

"Okay, fine. I did it. And if Carlos and Jennifer hadn't been such inquisitive idiots, it all would have worked perfectly too." Snapped Jo, as the three boys stared at her in horror

"But- but why would you do it, Jo? What would you gain from all of this?" asked Logan, who was still so completely shocked that he could barely speak

"Easy. Stephanie stole the part that I had auditioned for. It was a new role on Modern Family. It's an Emmy winning role. It's something sophisticated, not just some teen drama on MTV. So I tried to talk her into letting me have it. She said no, so I knew that I had to sabotage her. All I had planned on doing was breaking her nose and maybe leaving a few scars on her face; something that was hard to get reversed by a plastic surgeon and would make her unfit for the part. I guess that I got a bit carried away, but she had it coming," said Jo as she continued to pace around the room.

Kendall continued to struggle a bit with his bonds. Jo had untied one of his legs, and his arms were already pretty loose, but it was stupid to try and take her down with out full use of his limbs. He had to keep her going. Luckily for him, Jo didn't seem to have any plans about stopping.

"Jennifer was coming to New Town High. They were considering making her a part of the regular cast, and that was not going to work out. There's only enough room for one blonde one every TV show. Unfortunately, I got the wrong Jennifer. It was too far in for me to leave, so I did what I had to do. Mr. Bitters knew that something was up, though. He must have been prowling the halls because he was asking me all sorts of weird questions. Claire just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." said Jo, who was pacing around the room

"But- but why would you kill my mother?" asked Kendall, still attempting to undo his bonds, but also extremely curios as to why it was his mother that had been killed.

"Because she and Dr. Wegener suspected me. She had seen me running away and Dr. Wegener knew too much about forensics. They would have been able to tell that it was me. I had to kill them in. Camille and Justin were the same way. They saw me in the boiler room and I had no other choice." Said Jo, as she paced around the room glancing at the ceiling occasionally, too caught up in her own little world and all of its problems to notice what the four boys were trying to do

In Kendall's head, that had seemed like the perfect time to cut Jo off. He jumped up: risking it all.

* * *

><p>"Buddha Bob, Buddha Bob, Buddha Bob!" shouted the three girls as they raced up the hallways of the seemingly deserted Palm Woods<p>

The rounded the corner and stumbled upon the slightly disheveled groundskeeper who seemed to be attempting to use the phone. The girls gasped.

"Wait, can you make any calls yet, Buddha Bob?" asked Heather excitedly

"Ummm, no, but the phone lines should be up and running in about fifteen minutes. Maybe even less if all goes well." Said a slightly confused Buddha Bob as Katie swore under her breath

"Okay, Buddha Bob, as soon as the phone lines are up, call the police and tell them that there's a murderer at the Palm Woods holding a bunch of kids hostage in the basement! Can you do this for us?" asked Heather frantically

"Ummm, sure you guys…" Buddha Bob trailed off as the three girls set off for the basement

* * *

><p>In retrospect, maybe jumping at Jo hadn't been his brightest plan to date. But would swear, until the day he died, that he would never have done it if he had known that she had somehow managed to get her hands on a gun. And a loaded one at that. Kendall knew that it was loaded because one shot had grazed his shoulder. Thankfully, Jo was a pretty crappy shot, so he was able to avoid her by running.<p>

He heard the gun go off again, just as he spun around another corner of the labyrinth that was the Palm Woods' basement.

He stumbled again, his shoulder screaming in pain, as he stuck it out to help keep him steady. He couldn't take much more of this.

* * *

><p>Carlos was still frantically struggling with the bonds that tied him to his chair when he heard the door at the top of the stairs open and three sets of feet stumble down the rickety, wooden steps. He and Logan both looked up and nearly cried with relief when they saw that it was Katie, Jennifer, and Heather as opposed to an accomplice of Jo's.<p>

As Heather ran to help untie Logan and Jennifer crouched next to James' unconscious form, Katie put two and two together and ran down the hallway towards the sound of Kendall's useless reasoning and Jo's ammunition.

"Katie! Katie, wait!" cried Heather, as she finished untying Logan

The two got up and ran after Katie as quickly as their feet would carry them. James turned to Jennifer.

"If you untie me, then we can get him upstairs and somewhere safer." He offered, as Jennifer reached over to start untying him

* * *

><p>"No, not my brother! Don't you dare hurt my brother, Jo Taylor! Don't you dare hurt him!" screamed Katie as she ran down the corridor towards the sounds of the fight<p>

Katie rounded the corner, expecting to see Jo and Kendall wrestling for the gun or something else that looked like it was from an action movie, but instead found Jo standing over her brother's quivering form, preparing to shoot. Katie couldn't contain her gasp of horror. Jo and Kendall turned around to look at her, and Kendall's eyes grew wide.

"Katie, you shouldn't have interrupted." Said Jo in a soft, but deadly voice as she raised the gun

"No, not my sister, you bitch!" yelled Kendall as he pulled himself up off the ground and launched himself towards Jo

Heather and Logan rounded the corner right at that moment.

"Kendall!" screamed Logan, as he launched himself towards the fray

Heather, on the other hand, ran towards Katie, who had fallen down during the whole ordeal.

"Are you okay, Katie?" asked Heather, as she crouched next to the cowering twelve year old

"Y- yeah, I think so." She murmured as she began to sit up

Mean while, Kendall had managed to wrestle the gun from Jo's grasps and was now panting victoriously above her, as she cowered below him.

"Kendall, please…" she whispered

Logan shook his head. Jo couldn't be trusted.

Kendall, however, gazed deep into her eyes. There was something in them; it was something so innocent that Kendall just couldn't believe that it had really been her. She couldn't have been the one to have done all of this. It wasn't her fault. No one could feign that kind of pure innocence.

He lowered the gun, and gave Logan a pleading look.

"NO!" Heather screamed, as Kendall turned himself around just in time to see Jo launch herself at him, aiming for the gun

Kendall instinctively jumped backwards just as the lights flickered on above them and the generator began to churn.

For a split second, as he looked into Jo's face, she seemed to know what was happening. But as they electrical currents took a hold of her body and mind, her expression changed only to one of confusion and madness.

And then she finally stopped moving.

* * *

><p>The police had not, surprisingly enough, taken Kendall in for immediate questioning as he had expected. Instead, they sat the group of teens that had been in the basement down by the pool with the instructions of "don't move until we come to get you". They were more than happy to oblige to these wishes.<p>

Kendall held Katie as close to him as he possibly could. He didn't ever want to come that close to loosing her ever again. Across the table from him sat Heather and Logan. Heather's face was stained with tears and Logan had swung his arm around her shoulders in comfort.

Carlos and Jennifer came walking over from where the EMTs had been checking their wounds and collapsed onto a chair.

"James needs to go to the hospital. He's got a concussion and at least one broken rib. They'll take us there later, because we all probably have other things that need to be checked out, but they're taking him first." Said Carlos softly

James approached them from where the EMTs were getting a stretcher and an ambulance ready for him.

"I- I'll see you guys later, I guess." He muttered as he prepared to leave, but Katie got up and hugged him as tightly as she could.

"Be careful," she said softly.

As they six teens all got up to hug their friend, they heard the squeaky wheels of a gurney going through the lobby. They looked over in curiosity. It was Jo, her face as pure and innocent as ever, her blonde hair falling around her shoulders, and her hands covered in blood.

The rain began to fall as the police lifted her into a body bag and continued out the door.

It was over. Jo's holocaust was finally complete.

* * *

><p><strong>The last line, I will admit, is from a piece of great literature. Does anyone know it? <strong>

**Eventually I'll get up the acknowledgements and sequel/ epilogue info. **

**Thank you so much for reading and I hope I wrapped it up as well as you hoped. **

**Please review, as always.**


	11. Chapter 11

**It's over. It's finally over. I cannot believe it. **

**I hope the ending was up to everyone's standards. **

**Eventually, I decided on an epilogue. Maybe I'll have a sequel, but who knows.**

* * *

><p>Kendall pushed himself up out of bed. It was going to be a long day, and he alreadyknew it.<p>

He immediately went to his closet and began to dig through his large pile of suit jackets. Some were from movie premiers, some from music videos, and a few were even from some very memorable weddings. Then he found the one that he had been searching for. The one for memorials.

He eventually managed to shave, shower, and ingest a food like substance (aka, Heather's peanut butter cookies). He heard the car horn outside and immediately wiped the crumbs from his jacket and face. Heather would have a fit if she knew that cookies were all he had eaten for breakfast. Ever since the Olympics, she had really started getting onto him about maintaining his health and fitness.

He climbed into the back seat of the Subaru. The first thing he noticed was that someone was missing.

"Where's Logan?" he asked as he looked around the car that was empty except for himself and Heather

"Oh, he's at the gas station getting some Coke for James and me." Said Heather as she drove around the corner and into the parking lot of the local 7/11

Logan came running out of the gas station, his tie undone and hair uncombed, holding two giant bottles of Coke and a pack of gummy worms. As he opened the car door, both Heather and Kendall looked at the gummy worms curiously.

"Ummm… what's with the gummy worms, honey?" asked Heather

"Well, Carlos called and asked me to bring some. Apparently Jennifer's been craving them for a while now and he doesn't want to leave her to go get some." Explained Logan as he sat down and fastened his seat belt.

"Speaking of which, when is the kid due? She looks like she's about to pop!" joked Kendall

"Yeah, she sure does…" agreed Heather as they the car turned the corner and rolled across the gravel to the wide open lawn with the small fountain in the middle

As the car rolled to a smooth stop, Kendall unbuckled his seat belt and prepared to open the car's door. As much as he had missed James, he wasn't really in the mood to be around him and his girlfriend, especially since his was out of town.

Heather put the car into park and Logan (the eternal gentleman that he was) jumped out and rushed around to open up her door and help her out. Heather rolled her eyes as she took his outstretched hand, but Kendall saw her blushing lightly.

The two meandered over to the rest of the small group of (now) young adults. Katie and her boyfriend were there along with James, his girlfriend, and the two proud parents to be: Jennifer and Carlos. Kendall loved them dearly, but sometimes he couldn't help but resent their happiness. Sometimes they just seemed so oblivious to the world around them. It had been like that when Logan and Heather had first gotten married, now that he stopped to think about it. Eventually, though, they had snapped out of it once they realized that they hadn't paid for electricity one month.

Kendall wandered away from the crowd of his friends and over to the row of head stones that lay in the grassy field. He passed Camille, Justin, Claire, and Dr. Wegener until he found the stone that he was looking for: "Jennifer Marissa Halston Knight". His mother.

He knelt by the head stone, and pulled out the daffodil that he had picked just before Logan had come to pick him up.

"I know that I don't come to see you as much as Katie, but I just want you to know that I'll always be your little boy, mom." He whispered as he lay the flower on her grave. He was about to get into what he had been doing for the past year since he had last seen her (training for the Olympics, mainly) when Heather and Logan came running towards him.

"Jen- Jennifer's gone into labor, Kendall!" gasped Logan, who was panting for breath

He looked past the two and could see Carlos frantically trying to help Jennifer into the car.

"Well, come on, you guys! We'd better get to the hospital!" he said as he jumped up and headed towards Heather's car.

* * *

><p>Fourteen hours and seventeen minutes later, the band, Katie, and James' girlfriend were all still sitting in the waiting room of the St. Marcus Maternity Ward's hospital.<p>

"It's not gonna happen today. We should all just head home." Sighed Katie

As much as Kendall wanted to be there for his friend, he had to agree. It was going on midnight and she still hadn't had the baby. Maybe they should just come back in the morning.

"Hey, we all know that as soon as we leave, she'll have the kid. Why don't we all go get pizza or something?" suggested Heather

Logan and James mumbled in agreement as they stood up and headed towards the door.

"I'll stay here, just in case, you guys." Said Kendall as the rest of the group left

Just as the elevator doors closed, Carlos came running out of the delivery room. Kendall jumped up expectantly.

"The doctor said that it shouldn't be long now. I- I hope you don't mind that we're having Logan and Heather be the god parents. It's just that…" Carlos began, but Kendall understood.

Kendall played professional hockey now and traveled constantly. If something were ever to happen to Jennifer and Carlos, Heather and Logan would do a way better job than he would.

"It's fine," he said.

"Oh, that's not all. Um, we were wondering if we could name her Marissa, you know, after your mom. I wanted Jennifer after her, but Jen said it would be way too confusing and make us look kind of narcissist." Carlos asked

"Really? You mean it?" gasped Kendall a small smile forming on his face

"Yeah. We do." Said Carlos, as he smiled back at his friend

Kendall's smile was a clear enough answer for Carlos. As the father to be rushed back into the delivery room, Kendall headed for the elevator. Carlos saw.

"Um, where are you going?" he called

"To go tell Marissa's god parents that they can eat pizza later." Answered Kendall

* * *

><p>Carlos and Jennifer would go through a great many sleepless nights before little Marissa Sylvia would finally sleep through the night. She grew up into her mother's looks. Their second child, Dylan, had inherited Carlos's clumsiness (and, eventually, helmet) but Jason Mitchell managed to keep him in line.<p>

Yes, Logan and Heather eventually became parents too. Six different times, to be exact. And with every child, Logan's hair turned a shade grayer. Jason, Nathan, Sally, Claire, PJ, and Andrew had inherited one of their parent's brains, but Jason was almost an exact replica of his father. Sally, however, was her mother in miniature. Always yelling at her brothers and rolling her eyes at her uncle James' hair combing.

James and his girlfriend eventually got married and had just one son. They named him Justin, after the only person at the Palm Woods that might have been more self obsessed than James had once been. Gustavo had graciously suggested his own name, but was turned down.

Katie ended up meeting Claire's brother at one of the memorial services years and years later and it was love at first sight. Literally. She called me that night from a pay phone in Vegas. His name is Brandon and I guess it could be worse. He already had two kids from his first wife (who had left him just after his daughter was born). Their names were AJ and Molly. Katie spent about a year attempting to convince me not to kill him (she was pregnant too, which had not helped in the slightest) but I eventually came around after Sean was born. By the time Allie arrived, I had managed to forgive both of them completely.

Dad's back in the picture now. I called him as soon as Katie told me that she was pregnant and married. After he explained his and mom's shoot gun wedding, I realized that it really could have been a whole lot worse. Katie and Brandon had love, at least.

I got married just after Marissa was born. Our three kids (Caleb, Johnny, and Landon) have managed to make me smile every day since they were born. I'm still not on any of those "Where are they now?" VH1 specials, and my Gold Medal is somewhere out in Public storage.

Though June 26th will always remain a day of sorrow, life has gone on.

But not with out a few last goodbyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Sequel<strong>: Either their recovery and how they got to the point that they're at in the epilogue, or another murder/ horror story with more James and Kendall romance. However, I wouldn't bet on it since I am currently starting a new project.

**New Project!** It is entitled "A Very Potter Threequel" and will be homage to the infamous "A Very Potter Musical" and "A Very Potter Sequel". Any Potter fans that have not seen it… well, you don't know what you're missing. It's on YouTube, so no excuses! Go watch it. Now!

* * *

><p><strong>Acknowledgements:<strong>

**Taylor was submitted by maddyB3**

**Elle was from GossipQueen101**

**Thenk you to every reviewer! **

**xxHippiexx**

**mavk4444**

**kittenxxkisses**

**witnessgreatness21**

**Noelle Lane**

**MaxRideRox**

**HugeBTRHoAFan**

**Silverprint**

**Glee Clue Rock 1251**

**GemLeighXx**

**LittleMissMia123**

**MaddyB3**

**BTRmakesmeCRAZY**

**LuvsBTR**

**Darkfire25**

**Bigtimerushlover98**

**GossipQueen101**

**21Soccer-Diva21**

**Frecklefaceknows**

**Wizardslover**

**kendell lover**

**jadethestar**

* * *

><p>Thank you so much for all of your reviews, and I hope that the ending was up to all of your standards.<p>

Please continue to R&R to all.


End file.
